We had the opportunity this evening to attend the annnual celebration of the Will To Succeed Foundation http://www.willtosucceed.org/ We were guests of Will & Senia Shields. Most everyone that knows of Will Shields and his all-pro efforts with the KC Chiefs is also aware, at least to a certain extent, the fact Will & Senia are involved with our city. We all know that major sports figures have ties to a charity or two simply because it's good public relations. I will tell you that the Will To Succeed Foundation is a lot more than just window dressing or a banner at Arrowhead Stadium.
The best story that I can tell you is that in May I was building a temporary photo studio at one of the Foundation's charity locations (St Vincents / Operation Breakthrough http://www.operationbreakthrough.org/ ) for use in my SporTrait of Will. In walks Will & he was carrying his football helmet for the photoshoot. The kids wanted to know why Will was carrying a Chiefs helmet. Do you understand? In the modern "me" era surrounding pro sports--where sharpies are being pulled from socks & entourages are appearing with full press coverage for a simple photo op to help charity--these kids did not know Will Shields the football player: they simply knew him as "Will" the big black guy that comes to the shelter a lot to help the kids, families & teachers. Wow - that blew me away. It was subtle & almost silent: "why does he have a Chiefs helmet" Here's my favorite shot from that session. The image was produced for use in our 4th poster for the KC Sports Commission (Mr. Shields won an award for achievement in professional sports). A few more shots: http://www.greggriess.com/will_shields
