INDIANAPOLIS -- The joy and enthusiasm on the faces of the Jamaican children was all too familiar for Indianapolis Colts defensive back Darius Butler. That was the same feeling Butler had as a 10-year-old when former NFL quarterback Warren Moon threw him a football during a fan event during the week of Super Bowl XXIX in South Florida in 1995.
This offseason Butler completed his fifth straight year of taking part in a weeklong football camp in Jamaica. What started as a favor to one of his closest high school friends has turned into a yearly offseason event for Butler.
"It's awesome seeing the excitement that these kids, which range from 6 to 18, have from us being there," Butler said. "They know the Marshawn Lynches, the Tom Bradys, the Andrew Lucks, but they couldn't spot most of the NFL players. As soon as they know you're playing professional sports, they know they need to listen, they need to ask whatever questions need to be ask. I get all kind of questions. I stay in touch with the kids through email, social media. Those little things, they go a long way."
Butler's high school friend Andrew Bachelor, whose parents are Jamaican, has a foundation called the RuJohn Foundation and they host sports and educational workshops in Jamaica for the kids. Guest speakers and participants over the years include Lynch, actor Jussie Smollett, actress Raven-Symone and former Colts player Raheem Brock as well as other NFL players.
Rugby, track and field, soccer and cricket are the main sports in Jamaica. American football is not something they're too familiar with. That's where people like Butler and current and former NFL players come in.
"We really just want to introduce and show the fundamentals of American football because they don't really get that out there," Butler said. "They have all the talent, all the speed, all the toughness, agility that's needed to play American football, but don't really have the structure over there for that. That's where we come in and help them."
Butler's passion for the Jamaican camps in Kingston and Montego Bay also often has him assisting in the basketball camps there, too. Butler has hosted his own football camp in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida as well.
"Going to Jamaica really, really inspired me to do my own youth camp. Hopefully I'm having the same kind of impact," Butler said. "I know how something as little as a high five or handshake or hug or quick talk, running through some drills, I know those things can go a long way. It lets them know that this is something attainable if they put their mind to whatever they want to do."