The End

Now we all know more about Walter Payton, from his stats in football, to his fighting cancer, to his family, and foundations in memory of him.  What to take from this blog is that just because they were an icon/hero in a certain sport doesn't mean thats all who they are or were, you learn alot about a person by looking into who they are or were.  Walter is making a difference with his legacy, little boys will continue to look up to him in football, people fighting cancer will look up to him for hope and faith, and hopefully families can look at how he was a family man no matter what he took on or how busy he was he had time for the people who matter most.  Today in life all we care about is the "American Dream" we forget that little things mean the most, money can't buy happiness, tomorrow is gauranteed, either are the people around you.  The main thing i've learned from Walter is live each day as if its your last!

How to cope/deal with the loss of a loved one

I know all I talk about in my blog is about Walter, but what about his family.  When someone/ a loved one is lost, it's the family that you have to pray for and think about.  His wife lost a husband and best friend, his children lost their hero and their father, It's the worst feeling a person can feel, I know because i've lost my Step Dad, who was a best friend I could run to, a hero, and father.  Where do you go from rock bottom? 

According to helpguide.org Grieving is a personal and highly individual experience. How you grieve depends on many factors, including your personality and coping style, your life experience, your faith, and the nature of the loss. The grieving process takes time. Healing happens gradually; it can’t be forced or hurried and there is no normal time for grieving.  Some people may feel better in weeks to months, and some it takes years.
Some Myths about grieving:
Myth:If you ignore it, it will go away
Fact:  If you ignore it, it will only become worse
Myth:It's important to be strong in the face of others
Fact: feeling frightened or lonely is a normal reaction to loss
Myth:If you don't cry it means your not sorry for the loss
Fact: Crying is a normal response to sadness, but its not the only one, if a person doesn't cry they may have another way of showng their sadenss.
Myth:Grief should last about a year
Fact: There is no right time frame for grieving

According to psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

The five stages of grief:

• Denial: “This can’t be happening to me.”
• Anger: “Why is this happening? Who is to blame?”
• Bargaining: “Make this not happen, and in return I will ____.”
• Depression: “I’m too sad to do anything.”
• Acceptance: “I’m at peace with what happened.”

Some signs you might need professional help

• Feel like life isn’t worth living
• Wish you had died with your loved one
• Blame yourself for the loss or for failing to prevent it
• Feel numb and disconnected from others for more than a few weeks
• Are having difficulty trusting others since your loss
• Are unable to perform your normal daily activities

Theres always therapists you can goto at a hospital or clinic, or in school.  But if you don't feel comfortable talking about your problems with someone face to face there are hotlines you can call.
1-800-SUICIDE
1-800-448-3000
1-800-445-4808

And heres a website with a whole list of them if you'd like to check it out
http://healthhotlines.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/hotlines/FindOrg?IndexString=Suicide

Information on the cancer that took Paytons life.

Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis was the cancer that took Paytons life.  It spread so fast outside of his liver that he could no longer proceed with receiving a liver transplant.

What is Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis?  It is a disease of the bile ducts in your liver.  It is a progressive disease that leads to liver damage and will eventually cause liver failure.  Liver transplan is an option which is the only known cure for primary sclerosing cholangitis, but this transplant is normally reserved for people with severe liver damage, which in Paytons case it was too severe where he could no lonfer receive it.  (This information on the disease is found at MayoClinic.com )

Payton wasn't the type to treat this like it was a disease that was killing him, he was living each day as if it was his last, not letting the cancer win his last few days of life over.  He didn't want to talk about it, he just wanted to live his life.  The more and more I do research on Payton i've come to realize how much of an amazing guy he really was.  I grew up looking at him as an icon/hero/romodel.  But hes all that and then some, his view on life should be how everyone sees it.  Everyone is worried about the car they can't afford, their house payment they might not make, the wanting of a new outfit, worrying if they look good, plastic surgery, but the only thing Payton cared for was his family,friends, and team, and didn't care about superficial items.

Dedication/Motivation

When Walter Payton broke the NFL rushing record with 275 rushing yards in a game against Minnesota he had the flu.  Talk about dedication to a team, when most players now days get a cut on their lip they won't play.
It shows how much heart,motivation, and dedication he had for the love of football.  He was known to have a huge heart not only for the game but for his family, friends, fans, and his team.
Walter Payton is not only a hero "sweetness" for football, hes an all around hero in my eyes.  His nick name sweetness which was given to him in his college playing days for his smooth skills and movement, but the nickname sweetness could also go with his personality because he was a genuine sweet guy, who put others first.
Payton was also a smart guy, after his career with the Chicago Bears after he retired, he explored business opportunities with real estate, resteraunts, and race cars, but nothing held a candle to his dedication for helping other people.
Because of all his greatness he had accomplished, even though he has past he received man of the year award January 30th,2009

The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible.

Paytons Foundation

“Children have always brought a tremendous amount of joy to me and I feel

that if you can catch them at a young age you can really change a life.

There are a lot of studies that show that one act of kindness to these

children has a 40% chance of making that child have a completely different

outcome in their life. What you hope is that you can get a kid to

believe in something and to believe in themselves.”

-Walter Payton #34

The Walter and Connie Payton Foundation.
What is this foundation about? 
Foundations Mission:
It's a foundation dedicated to the emotional healing of the neglected, abused, and unprivelaged children by providing tools and opportunities to build self esteem and encourage a better family unit, giving for a better future.
They have a Holiday giving program with in the Foundation which consists of:
They give new gifts for christmas time, where the WCPF provides for approximately 16,000 children, children that are in great need of a little hope, some dont get any gifts what so ever.
They also have a Sweetness Run which is a 5k and 8k walk/run.
School supply drive, which collects new school supplies for the children who are in need.

If you'd like to learn more and want to donate to a good cause the website to go to is...
http://www.payton34.com/article.asp?a=175

“My husband started his foundation, The Walter Payton Foundation, in the

hope of providing for the in-need and neglected children within the State

of Illinois who found themselves part of the DCFS program. So that we, his

family, could continue on with the integrity and dignity of the Payton name

in caring for these children, we needed to create; the Walter and Connie Payton Foundation. Walter made the Payton name mean something special and we,

his family, accept the challenge to make only good things

happen in the Payton name.”

Connie Payton

 

Giving back!

Walter Payton didn't only have a legacy with the Chicago Bears, but also with his final days alive he promoted an organ donation commercials and brought new awareness out to the public.  Today, his wife Connie and their two children Brittney and Jarret continue to promote Walters favorite charitable causes, through the Walter and Connie Payton Foundation.
Walters two kids Brittney is a college senior and then his son Jarrett who is following his fathers footsteps and plays for a professional Canadian Football League.  Brittany is also following in her fathers footsteps with her organization Youth for Life campaign which encourages the young community to register as organ donars. "We've all had ideas and come up with things and different stuff to keep his legacy alive,"  Brittany said in an interview with Oprah.  I believe in family legacy is a good thing to keep someones spirit alive and to make a family stronger and closer.  Giving back to others keeps their fathers mission alive.

Human vs. Record

In 1996 when Dallas Cowboys opened the season on a Monday Night Football against the Bears, Emmitt Smith hurt his neck at the end of a game diving over people for a touchdown.  It was a serious injury and was on the field for a very long time, where he was then transported to a hospital, so severe that they didn’t want him to move so they cut off his jersey.  Walter Payton left the game to be with Smith in the ambulance and the hospital to be by his side.  Mind you Emmitt was one to come close to Walter’s career rushing record, and that didn’t stop Walter from caring he put Emmitt first as a person then as someone who might potentially break his record. This is what Ed Werder(one of the most memorable reporters of his time) remembers most about Walter Payton.

Emmitt and Walter

This is something we can all learn from Payton.  Sometimes we have to stop and think of others before ourselves, another great reason why Walter Payton was icon, hero, inspiration to everyone.  He wasn't only an AMAZING football player, he was also a man with a huge heart!