Most importantly, this Super Bowl party is benefiting Helping Hands for Freedom, 501C3 non-profit organization, whose mission is to support military families facing injury and loss. Ricky Williams understands the importance of supporting our military services members and their families. The party will be hosted at the PASSION NIGHT CLUB at the Hard Rock Seminole Casino & Hotel with festivities starting at 8:00 and going all the way to close.

The first 100 people to purchase VIP tickets at $250 will be invited to a private reception featuring Ricky and friends honoring those serving our country and treated to an open bar with complimentary appetizers from 8:00pm-11:00pm. General Admission tickets start at $100 and feature an open bar from 8:00pm-11:00pm. Admission only is $60 per person.

Come party with Ricky Williams and friends at the PASSION NIGHT CLUB for the “Tribute to Freedom” Super Bowl Party and help us reach military families who need our help.

Helping Hands for Freedom is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, Tax Identification 26-3084550, dedicated to supporting military families facing injury and loss, and improving children’s lives through mentorship and leadership programs. For more information about Helping Hands for Freedom please visit: www.helpinghandsforfreedom.org

Direct Contact:
Rod Smith – (602) 625-9547

Here, where the study hall is named after the philosopher Lao Tzu and one room contains some 300 Chinese herbs, Williams is a massage therapist in training, a running back who generally hopes to avoid contact on the football field now seeking his license to touch.

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As a professional athlete in a team sport, I rely on those around me for overall success. In the military, the families left behind are often the ones overlooked. It takes great unity, sacrifice, and dedication for military families to deal with multiple deployments, injury and loss. As a society, this is a team we need to be a part of.

Playing in our fantasy football league will bring you together with thousands of other football fans who are competing for great prizes, but at the same time, supporting military families in need. Whether it’s the entire season, our weekly games, or playoff games, we need your support. Cliché as it may seem, there is no “I” in Team. I can’t do this alone, but we can do this together.

Help me create the greatest network of teammates that will provide support and bring much needed peace-of-mind to our brave service members and their families.

We can make a difference.

Ricky Williams

To deliver a high quality site and top notch experience, Fantasy4Charity.com has partnered with 17-year industry veteran, World Fantasy Games, a premier provider of fantasy games to hundreds of brands and websites worldwide. Ricky will lead the promotional effort for Fantasy4Charity.com, introducing an innovative 3D draft-style fantasy football league called RapidDraft to the 21 million existing North American fantasy football players. RapidDraft is a single-user fantasy football game that offers consumers the opportunity to draft and play against 11 real-life fantasy football experts represented online by life-like “avatars.” The game allows consumers to easily draft a team and then create “friend groups” so they can have fun and interact with friends and family the entire season.

Most importantly, Fantasy4Charity.com provides sports enthusiasts the chance to support military families while having fun. Helping Hands for Freedom CEO Rodney Smith says, “With traditional charitable giving becoming more difficult, our goal was to create a giving initiative unlike any other. RapidDraft gives everyone a chance to donate less than $10 and have a chance to win $250,000.” As a long time non-profit advocate; former college/NFL player; organizer of hundreds of sports camps throughout the country over the past 18 years; and devoted fantasy football participant, Smith explored the “idea” of creating a fantasy site to support charity two years ago. After endless hours of research, a review of statistics, and several focus groups, the Fantasy4Charity.com concept was born.

Consumers draft their fantasy football team online against a group of Fantasy Pros in a 3D sports bar environment and then compete during an 11-week regular season and five-week post season to win a guaranteed Grand Prize of $250,000 – all for less than $10 a draft, with no hidden fees and proceeds supporting Helping Hands for Freedom. CEO Jeffrey Thomas of World Fantasy Games says, “We are looking forward to providing Fantasy4Charity the ability to reach out to fantasy sports enthusiasts. RapidDraft was designed with fun and flexibility and low cost in mind. It’s an honor to work with Ricky Williams and Rod Smith and their team to support military families that protect our freedom.”

Ricky Williams, one of the most interesting, compassionate and articulate personalities in the NFL quickly agreed to incorporate his name into the Fantasy4Charity team. Raised in San Diego, CA, home to thousands of military personnel and families, Williams understands the needs of the military families facing injury and loss. “I am honored that I was invited to support this cause and intend to put as much effort into this off-the-field as I put on-the-field each Sunday.” Williams will promote the game and the need to support military families with personal appearances, an online blog and twitter conversation. “The number of fantasy football fans far exceeds any other sport. The competitive and generous spirit of this fan base can reach countless military families who need our help.” My goal is to challenge sports enthusiasts across the United States to make this fantasy football league the biggest, best and most generous in the industry.”

About Helping Hands for Freedom
Helping Hands for Freedom is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, Tax Id 26-3084550, dedicated to supporting military families facing injury and loss, and building a national mentorship program for military children who have lost a parent to the war. For more information about Helping Hands for Freedom please visit: www.helpinghandsforfreedom.org

About World Fantasy Games
WFG creates fantasy sports games and web sites for brands and corporations worldwide. The company combines two experienced fantasy sports leaders, 17-year industry pioneer Sports Buff, and 9-year fantasy news veterans, Pro Fantasy Sports, with a new global strategic plan. WFG’s game expertise and its robust, multi-language B2B Software-as-a-Service (SAAS) solution are a perfect combination for businesses and brands looking to operate fantasy sports games for profit or promotion. Other WFG properties include SportsBuff.com and FantasySportsBusiness.com. For more information on WFG, go to WorldFantasyGames.com.

Direct Contact: Rodney Smith – (602) 625-9547

We are devoted to serving the men, women and children who are most in need. We work to address the gaps in the military and government’s support for the immediate needs facing our wounded service members, their families, and the families of the fatally wounded. In assisting military children HHFF, focuses on the needs facing the families dealing with multiple deployments, injury, and loss.

HHFF has developed programs that responsibly allocate funds to in-house and outside programs that support the goals and objectives of the organization. HHFF ensures that funding gets to those who need it most and the organizations involved are operating at the highest standards in distributing their funds.

PROGRAM SUMMARY

1. Building a national mentorship program for military children – Children of lost or wounded service members suffer not only from the devastating loss of a parent and life-changing home environment, but also from the absence of a significant contributor to their growth, development, and education. Children whose parents serve multiple deployments also face considerable change. Caring mentors provide the vital support, encouragement, and inspiration to help children, who face these significant issues, reach their goals in life.

•    Develop in-house sports and education programs as a forum to reach out and support military children.
•    Day care fees.
•    Sports, arts, music, and educational based program fees.
•    Tutor based service fees.
•    Camp program(s) entry fees (i.e. Football camp, space and science camp).
•    After-school program fees.
•    Counseling services not covered by insurance.
•    Additional consideration for support will be made on a case by case basis.

2. Emergency Assistance Program – Provide financial assistance to wounded service members, their families and the families of the fatally wounded. If military families are facing financial hardship as a direct result of being wounded or injured in Operation Enduring Freedom / Operation Iraqi Freedom, or if there is a loss of a parent, HHFF will assist with but not limited to:

•    Housing expenses – mortgage (saving homes from foreclosure), rent, repairs, insurance.
•    Vehicle expenses – payments, insurance, repairs.
•    Utilities, including primary phone.
•    Food and incidentals.
•    Children’s clothing, diapers, formula, necessary school or childcare expenses.
•    Medical bills, prescriptions & eyeglasses – the patient’s portion for necessary or emergency medical care only.
•    Appliance repair.
•    HHFF will provide assistance with travel expenses when family members and non-conforming “relatives” (fiancé, best friend, grandparents or significant other) request the need to be with a service member during treatment or rehabilitation, or when a service member has been fatally wounded.
* Financial hardship review process will also apply to those individual seeking assistance.

For more information about Helping Hands for Freedom please visit: www.helpinghandsforfreedom.org

Suddenly all is quite; dust and smoke fills the air.  SSG Shannon hears only the sound of his heartbeat getting faster and faster as he realizes…. “Incoming, INCOMING everyone take cover,” he shouts over his heartbeat, as mortars shower him and his men with shrapnel and debris from the explosion.  With instincts now at the helm, fear vanishes and he knows what to do.  Pushing himself beyond his own limits his focus falls onto his men.  “Have to get to the men. By all that is good in his life, it will be done, for God, Country and the Men,” he thinks, “he will help his men.”

Time seems to slow into a more constrained entity that is more easily controlled by the combat experienced Platoon Sergeant, as if there is some greater power lending him a hand.  Thousands of questions are rushing towards SSG Shannon almost simultaneously, but from where and by whom? How could one man answer all the panicked voices racing in his head?  Suddenly all questions are answered and SSG Shannon’s nerves calm.

SSG Shannon reasons through the situation… “All men are in the vehicles minus two, including himself, and about ten Iraqi Police were in close proximity of the mortars when they came in.  Doc is in vehicle two.  I need to grab him and my team leaders to look for the wounded quickly.”  All these solutions came rushing through his mind in a matter of seconds, and SSG Shannon quickly moves into action, just as the thoughts had been played out in his mind.  It seemed as if someone or something was controlling SSG Shannon, as if he was a character in some crazed video game; but there was no game, no restarts, and no extra lives.

“Doc. Team leaders, let’s go lets go” the platoon Sergeant shouts and his team immediately understands and jumps into action. Doc and SSG Shannon swiftly find Major Haythem lying on his back yelling in agony. “Wrap it up Doc, it’s just a superficial leg wound to the lower left leg. He is non-critical get him on the up-armored HMVV. Hurry, hurry, before more rounds start coming in.” Shannon shouts.  The combat veteran moves from wounded to wounded as if it was an act he was performing after extensive rehearsals. It was almost as if he was being controlled by some other presence? God, perhaps? Maybe luck or training?

SSG Patrick Shannon has spent eight years in the US Marine Corps and recently retired after serving five year’s as a reservist with the US Army.  He brings years of military service that is priceless to the development and success of Helping Hands for Freedom.  After receiving rewards like the Bronze Star and Purple Heart from the United States military he is excited to bring the goals of our organization into reality.  As the Executive Director of Helping Hands for Freedom SSG Patrick Shannon wishes to ensure that service men that have lived through tragic experiences similar to his get the treatment and help they need and deserve.

As a father of four beautiful children, he also maintains a vested interested in our nation’s future.  By joining Helping Hands for Freedom, SSG Shannon is expanding his mission from a strictly military focus, working with organizations like the Wounded Warriors Project, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion in the past, to now include military children. He looks forward to translating his passion and dedication within the military service into becoming a positive role model and leader for children across the country.

With SSG Shannon, Rodney Smith brings over 18 years of non-profit experience to Helping Hands for Freedom.  As an active member of the non-profit community, Rodney has dedicated his time and efforts to the advancement of children, as well as military service members and their families.  Rodney Smith has founded and worked with other non-profit organizations like Future for KIDS and Freedom Is Not Free. He has created, managed and operated 98 youth camps and reached out to over 129,000 children and parents, while raising and distributing over 580,000 USD since 2006 in grants and relief funds to wounded service members, their families and the families of the fatally wounded through another military charity.

Both SSG Shannon and Rodney believe that through mentorship and after-school sports and education programs one can open more doors and create more opportunities for children otherwise disadvantaged.  And through financial relief we can better take care of those who protect us.  Helping Hands for Freedom’s objective is to continue a tradition of service in the improvement of those lives we have come to rely upon.

On the fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq the United States hit a tragic benchmark, amassing a total of four thousand casualties; and with countless more wounded in service there is an unfortunate opening for our communities to come together and take a stand to support the troops in their time of need.  And with the widespread belief that the future of our country and the world rests on the shoulders of younger generations, Helping Hands for Freedom works to fill the gaps in assistance to better the lives of all.