As the game of football continues to grow, the NFL has made it its mission to expand its footprint beyond the borders of the United States. The NFL International Series gives fans from places such as Madrid, Spain and Sao Paolo, Brazil a chance to see an NFL game live and in person. The NFL International Player Pathway has allowed players like Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle Jordan Mailata and Washington Commanders edge rusher Efe Obada a chance to experience elite facilities and NFL-level coaching they may not have had access to otherwise. Another aspect of this game is seeing the impact NFL players have abroad, and one ex-Atlanta Falcons star has decided to use his platform as a vehicle for change.
In a recent press release, ex-Falcons receiver Mohamed Sanu is partnering with his mother, Aminata Koroma, and Develop Africa, a non-profit charitable organization working to exact sustainable and meaningful change in Africa, to build a multipurpose community center in his native country, Sierra Leone. The community center's goal is to create opportunities for vocational and educational opportunities along with other resources for the local community.
The three-story facility is currently under construction and will hopefully be complete by the end of the year. It will be in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone and the city where Sanu spent four years of his childhood before returning to the United States, in Dayton, New Jersey, before his football career began.
Most know Sanu for his 10-year career in the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals, Atlanta, New England Patriots, Detroit Lions and San Francisco 49ers. Sanu was an integral part of one of the most explosive offenses in recent history with the 2016 Falcons, but he tabs this community center as one of his “biggest responsibilities.”
“Football was not my purpose in life. It was a stepping stone for being an agent of change and making a difference…this community center is one of the biggest responsibilities of my life. It will bring together people who inspire each other and they will stand as a testament to our long-term investment in the community. Beyond the bricks and mortar, the building will be transformed by the energy and passion of the people who visit — professionals, volunteers, staff and families."
According to Sanu, the building is to have three floors:
- First Floor: Individual workspaces. Allows locals to have a place to run their businesses.
- Second Floor: Large hall for community events such as school graduations, banquets and weddings, as well as various Develop Africa educational and leadership events.
- Third Floor: A state-of-the-art computer training center that will provide computer and leadership training for thousands of children, kids and adults.
Sanu is particularly excited about the third floor as it gives resources that those growing up in Sierra Leone usually do not have.
“The average high school graduate in Sierra Leone has never had access to a computer or any sort of computer training. Having access to such technology and training will enrich their lives and help prepare them for relevance in our competitive information-based and technology-driven society,”
To help benefit this venture, Sanu has set up a golf outing at the Bear’s Best Atlanta golf course on Thursday, July 11th.
He’ll be joined by multiple professional athletes and celebrities in the Atlanta area, such as ex-Falcons Sean Weatherspoon and Christian Blake, ex-Braves pitchers Jonny Venters and Kris Medlen and former MMA fighter Dustin Chovanic, among others.
To learn more about the community center, you can visit https://www.developafrica.org/sanu-partnership. Updates will be posted by Sanu on his Twitter and his Instagram.
