By: RJ Kaminski
Starting linebacker for the University of Maryland Terrapins, Jalen Brooks, lives less than three miles from North Gwinnett High School, one of the top fundraising teams set to play at Shootout for Soldiers Atlanta. He heard about SFS through social media and immediately thought about how his community could get involved.
Photo Courtesy: Carroll County Times
“A few of the videos I began seeing on Facebook,” Brooks said. “Then I followed [SFS] on Instagram.”
He noticed the event’s expansion plans for this summer and more importantly noticed his old high school on the list of top fundraisers, North Gwinnett. Brooks doesn’t have any living relatives serving in the military, but his late grandfather (AirForce) and the family and friends of his teammates all have some sort of connection to those who have served.
“A lot of my teammates and my friends that I grew up with have brothers, sisters, moms and dads who have served,” he said. “It’s good to see groups like [SFS] giving back and finding ways to support the cause.”
The Suwanee, Georgia native is prepared to spread the word of #SFSAtlanta, set to kick off July 2nd and 3rd at Kennesaw Mountain High School.
“Snapchat, Twitter and texting my friends,” Brooks said. “There’s also a lot of us older guys who have graduated from the program who play college football. They’re all back in town right now, so they can help spread the word to their respective schools that they’re going back to all over [the country].”
“It’s good to see groups like [SFS] giving back and finding ways to support the cause.”
Though he chose football over lacrosse while at North Gwinnett, the 21-year-old recognizes the worth his community is capable of bringing to the cause Shootout for Soldiers supports.
“Just getting people aware about it [is important],” Brooks said. “Lacrosse is actually growing and getting a lot bigger down here in Georgia.”
