CINCINNATI — The post-pandemic Cincinnati Bengals team is back on track when it comes to connecting to the community after a past season with mostly virtual visits.
“We'll have anywhere from two to 10 guys doing something every Tuesday for the rest of the season,” said Alex Simons, Cincinnati Bengals Director of Community Engagement.
In May the team sent 23 Bengals rookies to visit Wright Patterson Air Force Base. During the visit they had the chance to tour several different units to see their various missions.
“Guys got to try on bomb suits, they got to climb on airplanes,” Simons said. “We had lunch with the service members. And then we ended the day with a family picnic. And we hosted like a skills and drills, football camp for children of the service members.”
During the pre-season about 100 service members were invited to attend training camp. Team owner Mike Brown invited them down on to the practice field to get a closer look at the practice.
The team hosted the crew of the USS Cincinnati in April, bringing in Bengals legends Jim Breech and Anthony Munoz to personally welcome them to the Jungle.
In October, the Bengals are teaming up once again with Operation Ramp It Up, a Cincinnati-based non-profit that's mission is to provide accessibility to those who need it.
“I'm really excited because we're going to be part of the salute to service with the NFL and the Cincinnati Bengals this year,” said Greg Schneider, founder of Operation Ramp It Up.
He launched the ramp building mission in 2013 with his wife. Since then, he has expanded far outside the Tri-State area.
“We have ramps total right now in 43 states,” Schneider said.
A near 43-year employee at UPS, his employer recently helped ship ramps to Alaska for an install.
“We were able to ship some ramp from Louisville, through one of our 747s in Anchorage, Alaska," Schneider said. "We sent enough ramp that we can help three veterans in the Alaska area, and they've already installed two with the other one coming up."
He says UPS plans to do it yearly to help more veterans in that state.
Schneider points to one person for the success when reflecting on how his mission has grown nationwide and partnered with the Bengals.
“I definitely can't believe how, where we are now from when we first started. And really the rock star who made this happen was my wife,” he said.
The first ramp he partnered up with the Cincinnati Bengals to build was for a veteran in Indiana. While no players were there due to the pandemic the Ben-gals and other team volunteers jumped into action.
Next month’s build the players will be able to take part.
“We're excited we get to have our players back out in the community with us,” Simons said. “So, we'll take six to eight of our players to a home in Elmwood place and install a ramp for a veteran.”
Every year around Veteran’s Day, football teams throughout the league celebrate their "Salute to Service" and honor the military men and women, both past and those currently serving. This year the Bengals will share their honors during the Nov. 6 game.
“We've paired a service member with a player for player intros for the game, which has been so cool. So, we're finally getting to bring that back. Because we can bring people down on the field now, which is great,” Simons said.
There’s also a planned flag football game between service members during halftime where four Bengals legends will take part.
The Bengals are also teaming up with Feazel Roofing to give away a roof installation to a veteran honored at each game. You can nominate a veteran or service member by going to the nomination website.
There’s also a Bengals military scholarship available by clicking here.
You can keep up with all the Bengals Salute to Service programs by going to the Bengals website.
If you have a veteran story to tell in your community, email homefront@wcpo.com. You also can join the Homefront Facebook group, follow Craig McKee on Facebook and find more Homefront stories here.
