Perhaps no person is as respected and adored in New Orleans as Drew Brees, not because of his talent on the football field, but also because of his work within the community.
As Hurricane Ida made landfall in New Orleans earlier this week, the retired Saints quarterback watched from afar the city he calls home and raised his children in be dealt another blow while working his new job at NBC in Atlanta for the Falcons preseason game.
“This is all happening during the game and you’re sitting there like, 'gosh, how could this be happening again?'” Brees told Kristian Garic and Tommy Tucker of WWL on Tuesday night. “You try to figure out what’s going on and what the damage is like and you want to help but you feel helpless because you just don’t really know what’s happening and the extent of it all.”
The 42-year-old could not help but become emotional seeing the damage and devastation.
“I did [become emotional],” he said. “Not just because of the relationships you have, but you know how hard that road is, having been a part of it. I’m a firm believer you always come back stronger from any adversity and any setbacks….you just have to reframe and refocus very quickly. Alright, let’s get to work and come back stronger.”
Brees knows firsthand about the resiliency the city of New Orleans. He joined the Saints in 2006, a year after Katrina devastated the city, and played his role in helping rebuild the city through various charitable efforts and continued to have an impact after other adversarial feats such as the BP oil spill and Hurricane Isaac in 2012.
Brees told WWL he is already working with programs such as Second Harvest Food Bank and Convoy of Hope as well others in working to recover from Ida. He also added that there has been tremendous outreach of support from friends and family and those around the NFL asking how they can help.
“There is no stronger community and no stronger group of people than Louisiana form everything we’ve been through and continue to go through,” Brees said. “It’s hard going through it and hard to believe you’ll come out better on the other side…but we’ve always had an unbelievable way of sticking together and being able to support one another and do it together and just put one foot in front of the other and take it one step at a time but be there for one another.
“I’m confident we can do that again. I’ve already seen the efforts happening. It’s not going to be easy…but we’ll come out better on the other side. We always find a way.”
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