Bob McNair is no longer with us. It's so sad to lose someone who made so many people happy. And I'm not just talking about through the Texans.
Bob gave. A lot.
About a half billion dollars have been donated to charitable causes by Bob and Janice McNair and the entire McNair family. This was important to him because he cared very deeply about his community and his country.
Bob McNair is the most positive person I have ever met. I once asked him how and why he is this way and he simply said "I don't know of too many negative people who are successful, do you?"
So simply put and so true. You don't get to the level of success he achieved by being bogged down in negativity.
Another one of my favorites of his was "You can't go wrong doing what's right." That was a drop-the-mic kind of statement that always stuck with me. In fact, it's been recently emblazoned on the wall of one of the conference rooms here at NRG Stadium.
“You can’t go wrong doing what’s right.” Robert C. McNair
Without him, we wouldn't have the NFL here in Houston. It's hard to imagine how what is now known as NRG Park would look if the Texans were never formed. We certainly wouldn't have had two Super Bowls in a 13-year span. And even the Final Fours - forget about those.
The economic impact of what Bob McNair's commitment to bring the NFL to Houston is gargantuan. But the emotional and psychological impact is even greater. The Texans are a Houston passion. Every game is sold out. Every performance produces reactions that fill hours of sports talk, dinner conversation, water cooler banter and social media posts that consume our lives.
The Texans go beyond entertainment. They are a way of life for so many. It's heartbreaking that the founder will not be here to see the team's first championship. He wanted, so badly, to bring joy to the city and the region.
And he did. It's in the team's mission statement to not only strive for championships but to 'do great things for Houston.'
None of that happens without McNair fighting to get the NFL back here. The quest to beat Los Angeles in a late 90s campaign for the league's 32nd franchise is legendary. The league had obvious reasons for wanting to get back into L.A.
McNair would not be denied. He loved Houston and knew that the fans would embrace the team. He continuously went back to the league, putting up a record $700 million to bring professional football back to our city.
This is how he'll be remembered the most. But the story is incomplete without talking about all the giving, all the lives he touched and changed through his extreme generosity.
God Bless you, Mr. McNair.
Honoring the life and career of Texans Founder and CEO Bob McNair, in photos.
Houston Texans owner Bob McNair watches during warm-ups before an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Thursday, Dec. 2, 2010 in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Houston Texans owner Bob McNair, left, jokes with coach Bill O'Brien, right, after O'Brien dumped a bucket of ice cold water over his head after an NFL football training camp practice Thursday, Aug. 14, 2014, in Houston. O'Brien was challenged to take the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge to raise money for the ALS Association. The challenge, a social media phenomenon, is part of a program launched by the ALS Association to raise money for fighting ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Participants challenge others on video to do it or donate money to ALS before dumping ice cold water over their heads. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Houston Texans owner Bob McNair shakes hands with Texans' Andre Johnson with following a joint practice between the Denver Broncos on Thursday, Aug. 21, 2014, in Englewood, Colo. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)
NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue and Houston businessman Bob McNair, left, smile during a press conference in Atlanta Wednesday, Oct. 6, 1999. Houston rejoined the NFL, paying a record $700 million for an expansion franchise and beating out Los Angeles, the nation's second-largest TV market. . (AP Photo/W. A. Harewood)
ADVANCE FOR WEEKEND EDITIONS, SEPT. 25-26 - FILE - In this Nov. 14, 2002, file photo, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, right, and Houston Texans owner Bob McNair pose for photographers after a news conference at a Mexico City hotel. This nine-year-old expansion team can't compete with the popularity the Cowboys have gained in an illustrious 50-year history filled with figures that are ingrained in the fabric of this state. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano, File)
An image from the Aug. 9, 2017 preseason away game against the Carolina Panthers. The Texans lost 17-27.
Houston Texans owner Bob McNair poses with the new team's logo and helmet during a rally Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2000, in Houston. The Texans will compete in the 2002 NFL season. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan)
Houston Texans Robert C. McNair, founder, chairman and CEO walks off the field before an NFL football game between the Houston Texans and the Minnesota Vikings Sunday, Oct. 9, 2016, in Minneapolis. (Jeff Haynes/AP Images for Panini)
Houston Texans owner Bob McNair talks to former Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush before an NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013, in Houston. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, right, talks with Houston Texans' owner Bob McNair on the sidelines before an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 18, 2016, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)
An image from the Nov. 5, 2017 regular season home game against the Indianapolis Colts. The Texans lost 14-20.
An image from the Sept. 24, 2017 regular season away game against the New England Patriots. The Texans lost 33-36.
Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt, left, shakes hands with team owner Bob McNair, right, before an NFL football game between the Texans and the New England Patriots in Foxborough, Mass., Monday, Dec. 10, 2012. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Houston Texans owner Bob McNair, right, is joined by his son, Cal, left, before an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens Sunday, Dec. 21, 2014, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
November 1, 2015; HOUSTON, TX -- Houston Texans defeat the Tennessee Titans 20-6 at NRG Park.
Former President George W. Bush, right, and Houston Texans owner Bob McNair before the NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009 in Houston. (AP Photo/Dave Einsel)
The Bob & Janice McNair Foundation presents a $750,000 check to Brookwood Community, an educational, residential and entrepreneurial village for adults with functional disabilites.
