Video: Former NFL players inspire Mich. inmates with real-world lessons on resilience

By Dylan Goetz
Mlive.com

FLINT, Mich. — Herman Moore didn’t mature until his 30s, after his 12-year NFL career spent mostly as a Detroit Lions wide receiver ended.

Football provides access, celebrity status, fame, money and attention, but it doesn’t mature you, Moore said.

That was one of the many stories Moore shared when speaking to about two dozen inmates at the Genesee County Jail this week.

Percy Glover, co-executive director of community engagement with the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, invited Moore, former Lions player Tim Walton and Oakland County Chief of Pretrial & Justice Services Kenneth Briggs to speak to inmates after meeting them over a month ago.

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The trio spoke to a group of male and female inmates during an hour-and-a-half visit to the Genesee County Jail on Tuesday, July 15.

Their goal was to inspire hope and provide a real-world perspective on success despite difficult backgrounds.

The speakers connected with inmates by sharing their own challenging backgrounds.

Moore grew up in a single-parent home in the projects of Virginia, while Briggs’ mother was killed when he was just 12 years old.

“It’s really to provide an example of all three have been very successful in life, but they’ve gone through some things,” Glover said. “Even in all of their success, they’re still human.”

They memorialized their visit by taking photos with each group of inmates after a Q&A, panel discussion and meet-and-greet.

One of the female inmates asked if the jail staff could frame the photo they took with Moore, as it can serve as motivation during her stay.

Glover said the sheriff’s office is always looking for different opportunities to provide inmates with an effort to reduce recidivism.

“We’ve all been a close second to making the wrong choice that could have changed our lives – good and bad,” Glover said. “It is not our responsibility to hold people accountable for the rest of their lives for one or two mistakes that we should forgive them for.”

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