Travis Kelce brought together a cross-section of Kansas City sports for a good cause earlier this week, with Royals, Current, Chiefs and Sporting Kansas City figures all showing up for an Operation Breakthrough fundraiser.
Kelce has been the Chiefs’ nominee for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award three times, an honor that recognizes players for their work away from the field. His 87 and Running foundation has also worked closely with Operation Breakthrough, the Kansas City nonprofit that says its mission is “to provide a safe, loving and educational environment for children in poverty and to empower their families through advocacy, emergency aid and education.”
Operation Breakthrough said on Instagram, “The biggest win of the day couldn’t fit on a scoreboard. 🏆,” and added that Kelce helped judge the organization’s 7th Annual Celebrity Challenge.
“From Minute to Win It games to the Chopped food challenge and Walk Up dance challenge, teams gave it their all to support a safe, loving place for our children to learn, grow and dream big.
“Thank you to Travis, our celebrity captains, judges, sponsors and participants for making every challenge count for our children and families! 💛”
Among the local athletes taking part were Chiefs teammates Drue Tranquill, Justin Watson, Jake Briningstool and George Karlaftis. Royals pitcher Noah Cameron, catcher Carter Jensen and manager Matt Quatraro also joined in, along with the Current’s Izzy Rodriguez, Kayla Sharples and Lo’eau LaBonta. Sporting Kansas City midfielder Jacob Bartlett, defender Ian James and former SKC star Graham Zusi were there too.
Photos and videos from the event showed plenty of smiling faces, with several social media posts from the fundraiser displaying the wide mix of Kansas City athletes who turned out for the challenge.
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The Royals are still waiting on the rest of the package to catch up, of course, and that is what makes Rose such an interesting follow. His defense is still in the developmental stage, but the organization sees a path for him to become a regular outfielder if everything comes together. For now, he is giving the club something it loves to have in any prospect, a reason to imagine the ceiling before the details are fully settled. [Read more 🡒]