Vikings RB Peterson to donate toward relief of TX flood victims
May 4, 2016, 5:11 PM
FILE - In this Aug. 22, 2015, file photo, Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson smiles on the sidelines during the first half of a preseason NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders in Minneapolis. Peterson is donating $100,000 toward relief efforts after flooding ravaged his hometown of Palestine, Texas. The Vikings running back is partnering with the Salvation Army on a fundraising campaign after six people died in his hometown during the floods on Saturday. (AP Photo/Andy King, File)
(AP Photo/Andy King, File)
The flooding in Palestine, Texas last weekend killed six people and left dozens of homes in shambles, and Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson — who comes from the area — is going to do his part to help out.
As reported by Ben Goessling of ESPN.com, Peterson is partnering with the Salvation Army and will travel to the area Thursday to survey the damage. He will also be donating $100,000, with the possibility of contributing even more.
“If people put $200,000 in there, I’ll match it,” he told ESPN.com.
The 31-year-old Pro Bowl running back pointed out how his hometown is not known to have trouble with flooding, which is part of what makes him so eager to contribute.
“My mom is over 50, and in her lifespan she’s never seen a flood in Palestine,” Peterson said. “That’s what was so unusual about it. We’ve never had an issue with flooding. We’ve had heavy rains for days at a time, but nothing to this magnitude. For this to hit overnight, and the damage that it caused, it was devastating.”
Peterson said while his family was fine, some of his friends — including members of the Asberry family as well as a former high school teammate of his, Giovanni Oliva, who passed away — were not so lucky.
“I’ve been knowing him since elementary school,” Peterson said. “It hit me hard, especially being my hometown, knowing the Asberry family, the tragic loss of those kids.
