NFL Player Garett Bolles Wears His Learning Disability With Pride to Support the 1 in 5
This Sunday, December 3, standout rookie Garett Bolles of the Denver Broncos will be sporting cleats with special meaning to the 70 million people with learning and thinking differences. It’s a part of the NFL’s “My Cause My Cleats” initiative. Players get a chance to showcase a cause that’s close to their hearts (or feet!). Bolles will wear custom-designed cleats in support of Understood founding partner the National Center for Learning Disabilities.
Bolles talked about his own challenges with a in a press statement. “Kids would make fun of me just because I couldn’t read and I couldn’t say certain words,” he said. “One in five kids … That’s not something we should overlook.”
He’s not only giving back, he hasn’t been held back. The starting tackle was a first-round NFL draft pick and is the only rookie player on the Broncos to play every game this season. On his Twitter account, Bolles provided a touching explanation for celebrating people who learn and think differently:
As someone who was told I’d never achieve my dreams because of a learning disability, I’m excited to use my cleats to raise awareness for @ncldorg! They protect the rights of everyone with a learning disability, and I hope my cleats provide them with deserved recognition! #ThankU pic.twitter.com/DPBONNic71 — Garett Bolles (@gbolles72) November 30, 2017
Bolles is one of many athletes who have shared their struggles with learning and thinking differences.
Any opinions, views, information and other content contained in blogs on Understood.org are the sole responsibility of the writer of the blog, and do not necessarily reflect the views, values, opinions or beliefs of, and are not endorsed by, Understood.
