The National Football League (NFL) today launched its support for the WALK OF AMERICA, the latest expedition to be undertaken by the UK-based charity, WALKING WITH THE WOUNDED.
Having been partners of the charity’s Walk of Britain in 2015, the NFL has extended its partnership to support to the 1,000-mile walk being undertaken by six military veterans from the UK and the US, beginning on June 2.
Over the course of 14 weeks, the group will travel from the west to east coast, setting off in Los Angeles and finishing in New York on September 6, the opening day of the 2018 NFL season. The team will walk through some of America’s most iconic cities, landmarks and communities.
As part of its support of the expedition, launched by patron Prince Harry last month, the NFL will be the official walking partner for a two-week period beginning on July 23. During those weeks the walkers are scheduled to visit five NFL team cities, Kansas City, Chicago, Nashville (Tennessee), Atlanta and Jacksonville.
Walking With The Wounded (WWTW) was established in 2010 to support the employment aspirations and vocational outcomes of wounded, injured and sick servicemen and women, those who have been physically, mentally and socially disadvantaged by their service. Through their programmes they offer assistance to vulnerable veterans and assist them in gaining independence through new long-term careers outside of the military.
NFL UK has kicked off its partnership with the Walk of America by including a voluntary donation to the expedition on tickets sales for the two regular-season games to be played at Wembley Stadium in October 2018. Many opportunities for fans on both sides of the Atlantic to follow and interact with the expedition will be announced in the coming weeks.
ALISTAIR KIRKWOOD, Managing Director of NFL UK, said: “We are very pleased to continue our support of Walking With The Wounded by working with them on the Walk of America. Our partnership with the Walk of Britain in 2015 was a fantastic success, including a memorable climax at one of our games at Wembley, and we look forward to helping to raise the profile of the latest expedition. The NFL has great admiration for the inspirational people involved in this initiative.”
ED PARKER, Co-founder and CEO of WWTW, said: “We are delighted and privileged to be partnering again with the NFL. It will allow us to further the reach of the charity and the Walk of America expedition. We look forward to seeing as many NFL fans as possible as we walk across the United States and greatly appreciate their support.”
Walking With The Wounded promotes awareness of the wounded military community and the challenges faced by all those living with physical or mental injuries by undertaking high-profile expeditions with wounded veterans and serving soldiers. Previous expeditions include The North Pole in 2011, Mount Everest in 2012, The South Pole Allied Challenge in 2013 and the Walk of Britain in 2015. Corporate sponsorships allow private donations to go exclusively towards the work undertaken by the charity to support wounded veterans.