Leading up to the 2022 NFL DRAFT in Las Vegas on April 28-30, the NFL will host a series of community events in Las Vegas and virtually. From character-building initiatives, youth football events, mentorship opportunities and community greening projects, the NFL aims to leave a lasting, positive legacy in Las Vegas and throughout the state of Nevada.
Throughout Draft week, the collective NFL family will participate in events designed to give back to the Las Vegas community. NFL Green, in partnership with the City of North Las Vegas and Verizon, will kick off the week by planting 32 large Mondale Pine trees at Craig Ranch Regional Park and Goldcrest Park. On Tuesday, NFL Green alongside the Springs Preserve Foundation and Verizon will plant 10 trees and hundreds of drought-tolerant, climate-adapted pollinator plants in the Springs Preserve Botanical Garden to beautify the entrance to this teaching garden.
On Wednesday, NFL Draft prospects onsite will participate in a youth football clinic, engaging with local athletes. Following the clinic, the prospects will pack care kits for SafeNest, Nevada’s largest, most comprehensive nonprofit dedicated to ending domestic and sexual violence. This represents the first time that Draft prospects will engage in this type of project as their entry point to community engagement right before they join the NFL. After partaking in the clinic and community event, prospects will be made available to the media.
For its second consecutive year at the Draft, the NFL will continue its Inspire Change Huddle Legacy Program which aims to help close the digital divide. As part of this, the NFL Foundation is donating $75,000 to Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada. This donation will provide Youth Development Professionals in Clubs with upgraded tools and technology to develop Academic Success, Good Character & Leadership, and Healthy Lifestyles in youth. The technology will enable opportunities for virtual tutoring meetings, increasing digital literacy and expanding youth technology use in the region.
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DRAFT WEEK EVENTS AND ACTIVATIONS
NFL DRAFT TREE PLANTING AT NORTH LAS VEGAS CRAIG RANCH REGIONAL PARK AND GOLDCREST PARK: Monday, April 25, 9 am PT, Craig Ranch Regional Park, 628 W. Craig Rd. North Las Vegas, NV
In partnership with the City of North Las Vegas and Verizon, NFL Green will plant 32 large Mondale Pine trees at Craig Ranch Regional Park and the nearby Goldcrest Park. Joining the event will be Mayor John Lee, Councilwoman Pamela Goynes-Brown, NFL Green Director Jack Groh, and John Dorn, Verizon. The trees will provide essential shade, cooling, and beauty to the senior exercise area at Craig Ranch Park and to the east side of Goldcrest Park. Dozens of volunteers from the Las Vegas Raiders, Get Outdoors Nevada, the YMCA, Verizon, City of North Las Vegas Parks, and Brightview Landscape will assist with the plantings.
NFL DRAFT COMMUNITY GREENING PROJECT AT SPRINGS PRESERVE BOTANICAL GARDENS: Tuesday, April 26, 9 am PT, Springs Preserve, 333 South Valley View Boulevard, Las Vegas, NV
NFL Green, in partnership with the Springs Preserve Foundation and Verizon, will plant 10 trees and hundreds of drought-tolerant, climate-adapted pollinator plants in the Botanical Gardens to beautify the entrance to this teaching garden. The Botanical Gardens serve not only as a visually striking display of greenery and beautiful plants in the desert but also as a focal point for public education and outreach in water efficiency and climate change adaptation as the region continues to deal with a decades-long drought. Volunteers from Verizon, Springs Preserve, Creech Airforce Base and the Southern Nevada Water Authority Youth Conservation Council will join in the planting effort.
NFL + AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY TOUR OF MARTIN LUTHER KING FAMILY HEALTH CENTER: Tuesday, April 26, 1 pm – 3 pm PT, 1799 Mount Mariah Drive, Las Vegas, NV
In recognition of National Minority Health Month, the NFL and American Cancer Society (ACS) will welcome current and former NFL players and the Professional Football Players Mothers Association (PFPMA) to tour NFL Crucial Catch grant recipient Martin Luther King Family Health Center, a Nevada Health Centers medical clinic. MLK Family Health Center is a provider of primary care for the uninsured, underinsured, and geographically isolated people in Nevada. In January 2022, MLK Family Health Center was selected to receive an ACS CHANGE grant to address disparities in access to cancer screening by providing breast cancer screenings and prevention resources to rural and frontier communities through mobile health programs. CHANGE grants are made possible through a partnership between NFL Crucial Catch and ACS, promoting health equity, risk reduction and early cancer detection to save lives.
NFL DRAFT VIRTUAL CHARACTER PLAYBOOK EVENT: Tuesday, April 26, at 1 pm PT, link will be provided upon request
The NFL and EVERFI will host a virtual panel discussion for students across the country that have participated in the ‘Character Playbook’ social-emotional learning digital course. The course is provided to schools at no cost by the NFL and United Way Worldwide and promotes character development, relationship building, and mental wellbeing support skills. During the virtual event, students will hear from Draft prospects, Legends, and agents, about the importance of stepping and stepping up for themselves, peers, and friends.
PROSPECT YOUTH FOOTBALL CLINIC AND COMMUNITY EVENT: Wednesday, April 27, 9:30 am – 11:30 am PT, Play Football Field at Draft Experience
The 2022 NFL Draft Prospects will participate in a youth football clinic for local Las Vegas children. Following that, will be a community event where the prospects will pack care kits for SafeNest, a local organization supporting survivors of abuse. After the football clinic and community event, the prospects confirmed to attend the 2022 NFL Draft will be available for media interviews beginning at approximately 10:45 am PT in the same location.
INSPIRE CHANGE HUDDLE LEGACY EVENT: Wednesday, April 27, 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm PT, John D. “Jackie” Gaughan Clubhouse, 920 Cottage Grove Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89119
The NFL will host an Inspire Change event with Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada and provide technical support to address the digital divide. NFL players, along with NFL representatives, will join youth from local Boys & Girls Clubs for a table talk discussion on the topics of racial justice, mental health, gender equality and the education gap. Participating youth have been actively engaged in Club leadership programs like Advocacy Pathway and Young Justice, Equality and Diversity Inclusion (J.E.D.I), which give youth a safe space within Clubhouses and the community to engage and share their passion for advocacy. The NFL funds the Advocacy Pathway program at Boys & Girls Clubs nationwide as part of their social justice grantmaking.
SPECIAL OLYMPICS CLINIC: Thursday, April 28, 11 am – 12 pm PT, Play Football Field at Draft Experience
The NFL will host a private football skills and drills clinic followed by a Special Olympics Unified Flag Football game featuring Special Olympics Nevada athletes as part of the joint partnership through the League’s NFL PLAY 60 initiative to get physically active for 60 minutes a day. The NFL and Special Olympics have teamed up through the years by providing grants through the NFL Foundation and event programming to support Unified Flag Football teams that pair athletes with intellectual disabilities with athletes without intellectual disabilities to play on the same team.
FUEL UP TO PLAY 60 CLINIC: Friday, April 29, from 12 pm – 1 pm, Play Football Field at Draft Experience
The NFL will host a private clinic for Fuel Up to Play 60 students at Draft Experience. The private clinic will focus on football-specific fitness stations and encourage youth to get physically active for 60 minutes a day and eat healthy as part of the League’s NFL PLAY 60 youth health and wellness initiative.
DRAFT DAY 3 MILITARY APPRECIATION: Draft Theater
The NFL partnered with Nellis Air Force Base to invite 150 service members and their families to enjoy Day 3 of the NFL Draft with USAA providing a keepsake to each of these guests.
2022 NFL DRAFT FUEL UP TO PLAY 60 STUDENT REPORTER: Throughout Draft
Fuel Up to Play 60 student, SAVANNA SCOTT, a Las Vegas native, will serve as the FUEL UP TO PLAY 60 Student Reporter. She will have the opportunity to cover the Red Carpet and press conferences with prospects after they’ve been drafted. Fuel Up to Play 60 is an in-school nutrition and physical activity program launched by America’s Dairy Farmers and the NFL to help encourage kids to lead healthier lives. Visit FuelUptoPlay60.com for more information.
NFL GREEN 2022 DRAFT ACTIVATIONS: Throughout Draft
NFL Green is the League’s environmental program and works to mitigate the environmental impact of the NFL’s major events and create a “green” legacy in each community that hosts the NFL’s biggest events. In partnership with the City of North Las Vegas, Verizon, Springs Preserve Foundation and the Las Vegas Raiders, community greening projects include a donation of prepared-unserved food in partnership with Three Square, donation of event materials to local nonprofit organizations, a comprehensive waste diversion program including recycling and food waste collection at Draft experience, and energy offsets.
Local students have been invited to a Career Seminar at the Nevada State Museum to hear from a variety of professionals involved in sports, entertainment, and the environment.
Fans caught showing their team spirit and wearing team swag at Draft Experience may have a chance to win a unique NFL Draft hat as part of the NFL Green and Verizon “Swag for Seedlings” initiative which will plant more than 5,000 trees (20 for each Draft pick) to restore an area of national forest in honor of fans and their teams.
