Buffalo, NY – A day after 10 people were killed and three others were injured in a shooting at a Buffalo supermarket, Bills Safety Co. Mika Hyde He pledged to donate a portion of the charity’s softball proceeds to the families of the victims.
Hyde said the long-planned softball game was almost called off due to the events of the weekend, but he felt it was important to bring the community together after this tragedy and do something positive.
The The attack happened on Saturday afternoon When an 18-year-old white man opened fire on Tops Friendly Markets in a predominantly black neighborhood of Buffalo. The authorities described this act as “racist-motivated violent extremism”.
“I still can’t believe it,” Hyde said. “But when there’s hate in the world, you kind of erase it with love, and you come out here today and show love for the community and love for the youth, love for the community, love for the institution. I think that’s the way to combat he-she.”
A check for $200,000 was presented to Hyde’s ImagINe For Youth by event sponsors prior to the match. In addition to a portion of other proceeds, the money raised from the silent auction held at the event will go to the families of the victims. Everything raised from softball dates back to western New York.
The event drew more than 10,000 people to Sahlen Field in downtown Buffalo, after less than 2,000 people attended Hyde’s first charity softball game in 2019. More than thirty Bills players were in attendance, including quarterback Josh Allentight end Dawson Knoxback corner, Tre’Davious white and safety Jordan Boyer.
“Praying for and with our buffalo community,” The Bills chirp Saturday evening. “Our thoughts are with the victims, their families and friends.”
As the Volunteer OTA continues this week for the Bills, several players said they expect the team to get together Monday during meetings to see the best approach for the larger group to help the community and those directly affected by the shooting.
“My heart goes out to the victims and their families,” Allen said. “We haven’t really talked as a team yet. We’ll be in the building tomorrow and I’m sure we’ll talk about it and figure out a way to help the situation, help the families. It’s something you can never think that’s going to happen in your community and when that happens, it hits the house. I was sick all day yesterday. I was coming back from my sister’s graduation, and it was so painful. It really is.
“And again, we’ll talk as a team tomorrow and kind of figure out what we want to do, but there’s no doubt we’ll do something.”
Allen said he was glad Hyde decided not to cancel the event because it gave the Bills players a chance to “get out here and show a face and show that we care about this community.”
“The microcosm of an NFL football team, the locker room is different races, ethnicities, personalities, all mixed into one,” Allen said. “Get out here, have a good time and show the community that this is who we are as a team. This is who we are as a community, and we want to be a part of that community.”
While the day’s events included a home derby and a seven-game match between attack and defense, the weight of what happened in the community over the weekend was omnipresent, including during a moment of silence and the singing of the emotional national anthem. By Buffalo Police Officer Armond “Moe” Badger.
“If we stop and cancel everything out of hate, we won’t move forward,” Hyde said. “There’s a lot of it, and I think all you can do, like I said, is spread love and love each other. I think he’s been huge over the last couple years in the community, obviously going through COVID and all that kind of thing that’s really accessible and helping each other. each other and love each other.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.