On a recent Friday afternoon, Eagles standouts Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean made the trip to Lincoln Financial Field to meet with a special group of people.
Davis and Dean participated in an hour-long workshop with Ordinarie Heroes, a local organization focused on enhancing the development of youth. In addition to the event, the Eagles will donate $35,000 to Ordinarie Heroes through the team's 2025 A Fan of Change Fund.
"Ordinarie Heroes is a local nonprofit whose missions is to create a holistic ecosystem for young people that provides access to leadership development, mental health support, and other essential resources," said the organization's Executive Director Ron Toles, who pointed out that the "IE" in the name means "I'm enough."
"Our programs range from weekly group sessions on conflict resolution and decision making to academic support using poetry and tutoring, to operating a local farm and mobile food pantry, which are both youth-led. We like to think our secret sauce is relationship building because we value going deeper with young people rather than wider."
Throughout the event, Davis and Dean connected with the children through teamwork drills and communicated with them about empathy and leaning on the support around them.
"I like communicating and understanding the children, who their trusted person is," Davis said. "This is the first time I'm meeting these kids, but getting to know who their trusted person is, whether it was an aunt, a brother, an uncle, their mom. I think that was pretty cool just to understand their safe space and their trust person."
"I love that they figured out how to work in teams," Dean added. "They figured out how to be leaders and work in teams and communicate effectively with their teammates or with their peers. If you don't play sports, especially, you might not get to experience that. You might stay isolated. So for them to come together and learn that in a space like this is incredible."
Both Davis and Dean have been consistently involved in their communities, be it Philadelphia or their hometowns. They know how much of an impact they can have on those around them.
After the event ended, both players stayed for an extra 20 minutes to take pictures, sign autographs, and chat with the children.
"I think it's important because they're our future," Davis said. "Just to build and grow and develop into the next generation, it's important because they get to understand what empathy is early on. They understand how to solve problems, how to work in a team. These are kids that have the potential to be great leaders in their respective fields when they get older. It's just nice to see. It's never too early to start.
"We wouldn't be here without the programs that helped us rise and achieve great things. For us to give time and spend time just giving back into the future, these kids have the potential to play football, like we could be seeing these kids on the field in a couple of years. It's just really cool just to have that experience to give back." — Written by Matt Ryan
