Derrick Brooks has done a ton of charity work thoughout his career, and this is just a little taste of it.
As mentioned in the bio, Brooks was the co-recipient of the 2000 Walter Payton/NFL Man of the Year Award (The other player to recieve this award with Brooks was Jim Flanigan (Notre Dame Fighting Irish/Chicago Bears)
In 2004, Brooks was the winner of the prestigious 38th annual Byron “Whizzer” White Award for his dedication to serve his team, community and country in the spirit of the late Supreme Court Justice.
Brooks recieved the award at the 2004 NFL Players Gridiron Gala, which honored the unsung heroes of the NFL. Brooks was named the 2007 Citizen of the Year by the Tampa Sports Club. Along with Golf Pro Fulton Allem, Brooks won the 2007 Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am. In October 2006, Brooks helped establish the Brooks-DeBartolo Collegiate High School in Tampa, a charter school with a mission to provide youngsters a high quality, challenging education with rigorous and relevant curricula, thereby enabling students to make valuable and productive contributions to the community.
Brooks took part in the NFL’s “Take a Player to School” sweepstakes in 2007 and also in 2007, partnered with Edner’s Children’s Dream Fund “Dream Come True” trip. Brooks was appointed to Florida State University board of trustees by former Governor Jeb Bush in 2003 and still holds the position. Brooks was the recipient of 2003 Bart Starr Award, given to the NFL player, voted on by his peers, who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field and in the community.
For the 10th consecutive year in 2006, hosted “Brooks Bunch,” a group of 20 kids from Belmont Heights, Ybor City and Brandon Boys and Girls Club whom he invites to every Buccaneers home games. He also has taken “Brooks Bunch” participants on out-of-town field trips, including a 1999 visit to Washington, D.C, a two-week trip to Africa in 2000 and a visit to the Western United States in 2001, including stops at historical sites, such as the Grand Canyon.
In April 2006, received the prestigious J. Rex Farrior Distinguished Citizenship Award at the Tampa chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame’s 38th Annual Scholar Athlete Awards Banquet. The award is presented annually to a former or current player who has carried the lessons learned on the football field into a life of service to the community.
In early December, 2005 along with several other top NFL players, past and present, taped the 10th anniversary installment of Wheel of Fortune NFL Players Week, which aired in national syndication in January 2006. Each player was paired with a fan, spinning the wheel for cash and NFL-themed prizes while benefiting Derrick Brooks Charities, Inc
During the past five Thanksgivings (2002-2006), Brooks distributed 100 Thanksgiving dinners to families in need whose children attend the Wilbert Davis and Ybor City Boys & Girls Clubs.
Prior to the September 19, 2004 game against the Seattle Seahawks, Derrick Brooks Charities and the Buccaneers organized a program to collect monetary donations at Raymond James Stadium for the Hurricane Ivan relief efforts in his hometown of Pensacola, Florida. In addition, Derrick Brooks Charities donated $1,000 for each tackle he made against the Seahawks (10 tackles), which resulted in an additional $10,000 towards the relief effort. For his work in Pensacola with victims of Hurricane Ivan, the NFL named him the Ameriquest Neighborhood MVP for Week 6 of the 2004 NFL regular season
Brooks received an inaugural “JB Award” prior to the 2004 season, which was presented by then-FOX NFL Sunday anchor James Brown, recognizing NFL players for their commitment to achieve excellence off the field through building better communities and stronger families.
Brooks was one of three recipients of a 2001 Silver Medallion Humanitarian Award by the National Conference for Community and Justice.
