Artist Dan Dunn painted these three pieces on Thursday night at the dinner, and auctioned them off later in the evening, with the proceeds going to the Boys & Girls Club of Houston.
The Houston Texans were recognized as the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston 2011 Champion of Youth Honoree at the Boys & Girls Club's annual Steak & Burger Dinner on Thursday evening. Texans president Jamey Rootes accepted the honor on behalf of the team.
The annual dinner was held at Hotel ZaZa and Texans Ambassador J.J. Moses emceed the event. The Houston Texans and the Boys & Girls Club have a long history, dating back to the creation of two Youth Education Town (YET) Centers in conjunction with Super Bowl XXXVIII in early 2004.
Rootes, who said he was "honored" to accept on behalf of the team, quickly deflected all praise back to the event's host.
"The Boys & Girls Club truly deserves the credit tonight," he said. "We are proud to work with them and support their efforts to provide a safe place for kids to spend time outside of school and get active in a positive environment."
The Texans and the Boys & Girls Club have worked together on events such as the Texans' annual "Shop with a Texan" event at which Texans rookies take young club members on a holiday shopping spree, and the team's annual holiday bicycle giveaway, which saw the club distribute 230 bikes to Boys & Girls Club members. Additionally, the club donated $100,000 in mid-November to the Boys & Girls Club.
"The name of the award is extremely special to us because Mr. & Mrs. McNair challenged us to be champions for youth and we adopted that phrase as the motto for the Houston Texans Foundation," Rootes said.
Moses, a native of Waterloo, Iowa, explained his own special connection with the event.
"I was born and raised in the Boys & Girls Club back home," Moses said of his younger days. "It helped me form my identity, and it brought out leadership skills from within me. I can really relate to the kids, because a lot of them come from unfortunate backgrounds, and some of my friends did as well. It's so amazing what the Boys & Girls Club did, and what they still do today."
Moses, who frequently appears at other Texans-related Boys & Girls Club events, was proud of the organization's link with the charity.
"I think Jamey does an awesome job emphasizing the need to get out into the community," Moses said. "It was great for the Texans to get honored, and we look forward to continuing to work with the Boys & Girls Club."
*To view a photo slideshow of the event, click **here**.
