When the football team from Meade High School in Fort Meade, Maryland, ventured into inner-city Baltimore this past October, to volunteer with Happy Helpers for the Homeless at the Our Daily Bread Employment Center, some of the players were apprehensive, having never been to the city.

“The goal was to get away from the military base and the suburbs and learn to interact with people from various backgrounds,” Coach Rich Holzer said.

The mother of junior varsity defensive lineman NaQuan Wilds brought the opportunity to Holzer, who is always looking for volunteer opportunities for his team. In order to enhance the experience, the team partnered with the high school’s Key Club.

Holzer understood some of his players’ apprehensiveness because their parents were just stationed at Fort Meade. Afterwards, the players were proud to have helped people who needed help.

“Football can be a very ‘me’ sport,” Holzer said. “This brought them back to reality.”

According to Holzer, there was a high turnout because team unity has always been good. The football program is community oriented and Holzer believes that spirit strengthens team unity.

During their visit, the team members had many jobs including food preparation, food distribution and clean up.

Holzer noticed that the team handled the situation like mature adults. They did everything that was asked of them and nothing was said twice. The players, he said, were eager to help.

The captains of the junior varsity and varsity teams spearheaded the team’s effort to do whatever was asked.

“Through this experience they learned the intangible lessons that lead to them being better citizens, better brothers, better husbands and better people,” Holzer said.

At the practices that followed, Holzer noticed a lot of different attitudes. He was even approached by one player who told him, “Coach, what you make us do doesn’t seem so bad now.”

Another of the players, Jamarkeus Hammond, told Holzer that he was very thankful to learn the struggles that people have to go through.

Holzer said his favorite part about the entire experience was seeing the expressions and smiles on the players’ faces knowing they made someone’s day better. He said the players were humbled, but they also immediately wanted to volunteer to help others. Holzer had to remind them that they had a game to play that week.

The next volunteer experience for the football team is called “Book Buddies,” in which the football team partners with two elementary schools on the military base and reads to the more at-risk students. The goal is to positively reinforce the importance of reading.

There is also a plan to set up another opportunity with the Happy Helpers for the spring. Holzer would really like to go back next year and continue to make it an annual team event if the Key Club is willing to partner with them again.

“It was something other than school and sports related they could make someone’s day better through.” Holzer said. “They learned compassion and to be thankful for what they have.”

[WRITER’S NOTE: ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE FEBRUARY 2014 EDITION OF “HIGH SCHOOL TODAY”]