TONY RICHARDSON, NFL LEGEND
Tony Richardson, New York Jets Legend, embodies each tenant of the NFL's Salute to Service initiative to honor, empower and connect service members, veterans, and their families. Tony honors the sacrifices made by his father Ben Richardson, US Army Sergeant Major and Vietnam veteran, Purple Heart Recipient, and drill sergeant. His sister, Shon Richardson, was a Master Sergeant for 28 years with four deployments. To honor them, Tony volunteers his time supporting and meeting with military personnel. During Fleet Week, Tony coached military flag football teams and flew out to a Navy ship to spend the night on board having dinner, interacting with the sailors, and holding football chalk talks. Tony packed meals with AmeriCorps on September 11 alongside Roger Goodell and other NFL staff. Tony has served in the Honorary Commander Program whose goal is to connect and expose the local community to the armed services, and promote public awareness of the missions, policies, and programs of the United States Air Force and an understanding of the Department of Defense. Through this program, Tony was paired with the U.S. Army ROTC at Joint Base McGuire Dix in Lakehurst, New Jersey. The intent is to create one-on-one opportunities to inform and educate local community leaders about the missions of the installation and the United States military. Tony has partnered with the USO and toured Okinawa to empower service members that are deployed. Tony has worked with MVP (Merging Veterans and Players) which empowers veterans and former professional athletes by connecting them after the uniform comes off and providing them with a new team to assist with transition, promote personal development, and show them they are never alone.