Former Georgia safety J.R. Reed will be raising money for Camp Sunshine at the 2020 NFL Combine.
Reed transferred to UGA from Tulsa in 2016, Kirby Smart‘s inaugural year as head coach of the Bulldogs. After sitting out and redshirting in ’16 per NCAA transfer rules, Reed played and started in 42 games at safety for Georgia from 2017-19. Now, he looks to continue his football career and test his mettle in the pros, but football is not the only experience Reed had while at the University of Georgia.
As most college football teams do throughout the year, the UGA student-athletes are presented with opportunities outside the classroom and field to work and interact with the community. For the Dawgs, Camp Sunshine has become one of those opportunities and an annual highlight during the summer in June between spring and fall camps.
What is Camp Sunshine?
While it is a summer camp, it is so much more than that. Camp Sunshine was established for children of all ages who are battling and dealing with cancer.
“We are dedicated to creating a sense of place where children with cancer can be kids again.”
About Camp Sunshine
So why Camp Sunshine?
Kirby Smart and his family know all too well the effects of cancer can have on a child and a family. Kirby’s older brother, Karl Smart, is a cancer survivor. Karl was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 15, and he attended Camp Sunshine. Karl would later go on to become a counselor at Camp Sunshine as well.
The impact of those experiences has stuck with Coach Smart and his family.
Kirby talked about his introduction to Camp Sunshine and the importance of the players getting the opportunity to “give back” and the experience at the summer camp back in June of 2018 in a casual interview.
And for J.R. Reed, his participation at Camp Sunshine as a student-athlete has also stuck with him. As a redshirt junior in 2018, Reed talked about those experiences and the impact they have made.
As we mentioned at the beginning, Reed plans to help raise money for Camp Sunshine at the NFL Combine with pledges for every bench press rep he completes. The Combine’s bench press evaluation measures how many 225 lbs repetitions a player can lift. If you want to find out more, Reed has set up a fundraising and pledge page for Camp Sunshine.
Support JR Reed Reps for Camp Sunshine on PledgeIt.orgThe 2020 NFL Combine will start on Sunday, February 23rd and go through Monday, March 2nd. Prospects in the defensive backs group are scheduled to arrive on Wednesday, February 26th and the bench press for DBs will take place on Saturday, February 29th. That position groups’ on-field workouts will be televised on Sunday, March 1st on the NFL Network.