CHICAGO (WGN) — It’s been nearly two years since several Hyde Park Academy students visited Halas Hall to meet Chicago Bears president and CEO Kevin Warren.
The session was part of the Obama Foundation’s Futures Series — a program that exposes high school students to different career paths.
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WGN-TV caught up with three students who got the chance to meet Warren. Speaking at the Obama Presidential Center on Thursday, they say that, while plenty of time has passed, the impact of meeting Warren hasn’t faded.
It’s why after learning more about the business behind professional sports, seniors Elijah Boone and Iyanah Peters are seeing their futures in a new light.
“For my career path, I want to be a lawyer. So, it makes me feel like I don’t just have to be in a courtroom all day. I can be in the office if I want to. I can work for a brand if I want to; I don’t just have to work for a law firm,” Elijah Boone said.
“In football, you wouldn’t think that science has anything to do with it. But when I went there, he was talking about the brain and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and stuff and that’s one of my interests,” Iyanah Peters added.
Rayshawn Blackman is now a student at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. He says Warren gave him his phone number and has stayed in touch. When life felt heavy, Blackman says it was Warren who offered him words of encouragement.
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“He just told me to keep going, don’t let it stop you, don’t give up on your dreams, don’t give up on what you want to do, one thing doesn’t make you who you are,” Blackman said.
As the Chicago Bears fix their eyes on the Super Bowl this season, Blackman and his former classmates aren’t surprised. They believe the team’s current success is a direct result of the culture being built behind the scenes.
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“For me personally, I think this is why they are where they are, because stuff like that, it doesn’t go unnoticed. It doesn’t go unseen,” Blackman said. “When you bless people, when you give people opportunities outside of football, there’s happiness all around that building.”
Many of the students who met Warren are now applying for college and graduating in May. They add that the encounter has inspired them to aim high and dream big.
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