Just before the historic Super Bowl in Tampa, the NFL threw a forward pass for the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.
Weeks ahead of Super Bowl LV, staff at the National Football League collected brand new clothing to be donated to the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay’s Sexual Assault Services department.
Representatives from the NFL and Captain Fear, the Tampa Bay Bucs mascot, helped deliver the donation, which will benefit hundreds of sexual assault survivors.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor and Hillsborough County Commissioner Pat Kemp spoke on behalf of the city and county, expressing their appreciation for the donation to the Crisis Center, the certified rape crisis center for Hillsborough County.
Also in attendance at the ceremony were staff from U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor and Florida Rep. Fentrice Driskell’s offices.
According to Clara Reynolds, the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay’s CEO, the center’s Sexual Assault Services department serves individual 13 and older within Hillsborough County. Whether the assault occurred last weekend or 15 years ago, survivors receive confidential support and resources, she said.
“We see about a victim a day, and I will tell you, as of yesterday, Feb. 11, we had already done 12 rape exams for the month of February.”
How did the crisis center emerge on the NFL playing field? The NFL typically picks a couple of causes every year around the Super Bowl, Reynolds said.
“They would normally do a big luncheon or a big dinner to highlight the cause and then do a fundraiser, but obviously in this COVID landscape that wasn’t possible, so, they came to us, and they actually asked what we could you use? And, so, we provided them with a list of items for both males and females of items that we need.”
It’s been a busy time of the year for the crisis center, and part of the intake process involves taking the clothing of the victim.
“We have always historically asked the community to help support that effort by providing us with brand new tabs on clothing, and that includes, undergarments, shirts, shoes, as well as pants and sheets, because oftentimes we do have to collect the sheets as evidence, in addition to blankets, personal care items and toiletries,” Reynolds added.
When Reynolds and her team met with the NFL, they talked about client needs and the fact that this is not just a female issue. “This is also a male issue,” she said. “And so they were so incredibly generous. And I think what really touched my heart the most is that they were very thoughtful in the sizes that they provided us.”
The center received the donation the same month that the NFL confronted a new controversy: Seattle Seahawk offensive tackle Chad Wheeler had been dropped from the team for assaulting Alleah Taylor.
Reynolds clarified that the gift came about here in Tampa Bay.
“We certainly don’t have any connections per se,” she said with a laugh. “You know, I wish I had like a family of the NFL or whatever, but it actually started at the local level with the Forever 55 Super Bowl group that was out of here with Claire Lessinger. Clara was instrumental in connecting us to the NFL, and when the NFL came on last Tuesday to do the award with Captain Fear, the NFL individuals who were here were not the ones originally scheduled to be here because, unfortunately, the reps were all snowed in, in New York. It was one of those things that shouldn’t have worked but did wonderfully.”
What does work 24/7: the staff and volunteers at the crisis center.