Chiefs charity spotlight: 15 and the Mahomies

After six straight seasons as the leader of the Kansas City Chiefs, it's pretty easy to see that quarterback Patrick Mahomes is one of the best players to ever step on the field. He's a 3x Super Bowl winner, 3x Super Bowl MVP, 2x NFL MVP, 2x First Team All-Pro. Yet all of that pales in comparison to what he does off the field.

Outside of his ownership in teams like the Kansas City Royals, Sporting KC, and the Kansas City Current, Mahomes is also the founder and chairman of the 15 and the Mahomies Foundation.

15 and the Mahomies was established by Mahomes in 2019 and is aimed at "improving the lives of children" by focusing on their health, their wellness,sdd and the resources that their communities and families need.

Now, five years later, the foundation has helped thousands upon thousands of boys and girls across the country, and not just in Kansas City. Mahomes' foundation is able to do this by partnering up with some of the biggest nonprofit organizations and charities in the world, including the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, Make-A-Wish and the Special Olympics.

So whenever Mahomes is not accepting awards for his skills on the field, or when he's not practicing and preparing for the NFL's first three-peat championship, he's helping countless children through multiple avenues.

15 and the Mahomies programs

Mahomes is able to help all those children throughout multiple programs that 15 and the Mahomies has in their arsenal. One of them being 15 FOR 15 which is the foundation's "signature program."

15 FOR 15 focuses on one of the most important and time-consuming things in a child's life: the classroom. Focusing on everything from science class to athletics and making sure every child, especially those with mental or physical disabilities, see the foundation's impact.

They do this through after-school programs and helping provide classroom supplies to schools all across Kansas City and Texas. Not only that, 15 and the Mahomies also help by renovating parks for kids of all sizes and handicaps like they did with the MLK park in Kansas City.

Another big program that 15 and the Mahomies uses is the "Read For 15" program that encourages children to read whenever they can, hopefully sparking and developing a habit and love for reading. This program largely relies on parents and their children taking the Read For 15 Pledge that gives children chances at cool prizes just for opening their books for 15 minutes a day.

Read For 15 also helps teachers, especially those in underprivileged areas, by providing books and letting them sign their classrooms up for big events. Just this past April, Mahomes joined with nearly 3,000 kids in the KC Metro area to celebrate their reading achievements and the fourth anniversary of the Read For 15 initiative. Most recently, Mahomes and his foundation gave away countless books to kids all across Kansas City.

Not only that, 15 and the Mahomes partnered with Lead to Read KC and together they put together yet another huge rally of singing and dancing children alongside the Super Bowl MVP and his favorite books.

Mahomes also encourages kids to get out and volunteer, just like he did as a child. He does so through a program called "Volunteer For 15" which encourages children aged 11-18 to volunteer at least 15 hours in their own community. This will not only help their communities, but it will help the children learn leadership skills and open minds to see how other people live, giving them newfound respect for others.

These are just a few of the ways that 15 and the Mahomies is able to help children of all colors, creeds, ages and handicaps become just like him in every way possible. But, as many have come to find out on and off the field, Mahomes is never done and never settles.

The Gala is the greatest night of the year

Although Mahomes would likely say that the past two Februarys have held some of the best nights of his life (winning two Super Bowls in back-to-back years will have that effect), he would also lump in the 15 and the Mahomies Foundation Gala nights in with those joyous celebrations.

The Gala is known across Kansas City and Texas as one of the biggest nights of the year, not just because countless celebrities and athletes join in the fun while being dressed to the nines either. No, it's because those are the nights that Mahomes and his foundation are able to raise and then gift hundreds of thousands of dollars to local charities that do even more good around the KC areas and places like Lubbock, Texas where Mahomes has a home.

Just this past year, the Gala raised over $600,000 which was then handed right back to multiple organizations so they could immediately benefit children with disabilities, children who are sick or terminally ill, and children who are living in squalor compared to many of us.

Events like the Gala are what make Mahomes a consistent nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year award, given out every year by the NFL to the player who does the most charitable work for their community. And although Mahomes has been a finalist for a few years now, he has not been awarded that gold patch that will one day grace the front of his jersey for the rest of his career.

If you would like to help Mahomes and his foundation, be sure to check out their website at 15andthemahomies.org and donate whatever you can. Also, follow their social media pages (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) so you're always up to date on what Mahomes is doing when he's not slinging footballs and winning Lombardi trophies.

Make sure to check out our other Chiefs charity spotlights:

• Justin Reid - JReid InDeed
• Derrick Nnadi - Derrick Nnadi Foundation
• Travis Kelce - 87 & Running