CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Halloween came a little early for some kids in north Charlotte on Monday. The students were worried they wouldn’t have costumes to wear, but two Carolina Panthers players had a surprise up their sleeves.
Along with costumes, Panthers safety Matthias Farley and defensive end Chris Wormley passed out spooky goody bags to the children from Raise A Child of the Carolinas. Both players are represented by Athletes First, a full-service management firm that represents players, coaches, personnel and broadcasters.
“Showing that there’s so many people in the community that care about them, it really makes them happy and brings smiles to their faces,” founder and CEO of Raise A Child Shaguana Hunt said.
Raise A Child is an after-school STEM club at Sugaw Creek Recreation Center.
Hunt said it means a lot for the players to come out and support the community.
“Especially for those children who expressed they didn’t have any Halloween costumes,” Hunt said.
Both the players said giving back to the community and spreading joy is important to them.
Wormley said it’s everything to be able to give back to kids in the community that supports the team.
Farley echoed that sentiment. He said their focus is spreading joy and making sure the kids feel loved and cared about. And for him, this opportunity hits home since he grew up in Charlotte.
“Near and dear to my heart, being from this community, literally has a huge impact on me personally, to see the joy on the kids’ faces” Farley said.
Farley said he sees himself in these kids.
“It wasn’t so long ago that I was in a very similar situation, looking up to people and being super grateful for the opportunity to get something as simple as candy and costumes” Farley said.
He said helping Raise A Child really puts things in perspective for him. He wants these kids to not only take home the treats and costumes, but the ability to dream big and know it’s possible.
“They get to see someone from Charlotte going on to live out their dream, and there’s no reason they can’t believe that they can’t do the same thing,” Farley said.
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