Almost as indelible as the haunting images of Damar Hamlin laying motionless on the field in Cincinnati last January was the feel-good tote board in the aftermath.
As the good news about the Buffalo Bills' safety trickled out in the ensuing days after his near-fatal collapse in that Monday Night Football game against the Bengals, so too arose the mind-boggling money raised in his honor. The GoFundMe page that begin with a modest goal of $2,500 to help Hamlin's Chasing M's Foundation hold its annual Christmas toy drive instantly exploded and, really, has never stopped growing.
The fund received two donations in the past week, helping pad its astronomical total to more than $9.1 million.
There is Hamlin's feel-good football story. He's been cleared to resume all football activities and plans to be on the field again this season, beginning with the Bills' opener - on MNF, again - at the New York Jets. Sept. 11. This week he received the NFL's George Halas Award for overcoming adversity.
And then there's the business side to Hamlin's miraculous recovery. As in, what will he do with all that donated money?
"We have been very deliberate and intentional about taking our time to set my charity up properly," the 25-year-old Hamlin said in a statement recently. "I'm excited to begin sharing news about programs we are creating to impact a generation of youth and give back to others."
While individual donors have topped $9 million, another $1 million has come in via a second online fundraiser set up by The Giving Back Fund, a nonprofit which helps athletes and celebrities manage their charitable giving.
Last week, the news outlet Sportico reported on turmoil within The Giving Back Fund sparked by the question of whether gifts to Hamlin's GoFundMe are charitable donations. Marc Pollick, CEO of The Giving Back Fund, disputed the accuracy of Sportico's reporting in a statement and said the organization's leadership "has always operated ethically, appropriately, and legally."
GoFundMe confirmed that they continue to hold the funds given to Hamlin's campaign and will do so until he requests they be transferred.
Said Hamlin in his statement, "My charity is not connected to the challenges being faced by the leadership of The Giving Back Fund."
Hamlin first started Chasing M's Foundation in May 2020 when he was still a student playing with the University of Pittsburgh.
Hamlin has teamed up with the American Heart Association for a campaign to teach a simple version of CPR and met with President Joe Biden at the White House to push for life-saving defibrillators in schools.
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