Six lucky Chicago West Side students are headed to Super Bowl LVII
CHICAGO (CBS) – One male mentoring program is changing lives through memorable experiences.
Six West Side young men are headed to the Super Bowl on Sunday. They leave town on Friday, but CBS 2's Shardaa Gray caught up with them before they packed their bags.
The students are getting an incredible opportunity. They're going to the big game in Phoenix.
"My mind was blown since I first got the news," said Melvin Bush, 17, a senior at Rowe-Clark Math & Science Academy.
"What I'm really most excited about is just being in the atmosphere of the Super Bowl because that's what I dreamed about," said Keshaun Tillis, 15, a Rowe-Clark freshman.
"This it about to be my first time on the plane," said West Town Academy senior Phillip Jones. "Like, I'm just going to be excited, just walking through the airport."
"I'm excited to see Rihanna," said Xavier Leverette, 16, a junior at Waubonsie Valley High School.
These young men are part of the Champs Male Mentoring, a program dedicated to creating a community of men who support each other and empower youth of Chicago.
Besides the halftime show, Leverette said he's excited to share the experience with his new brothers.
"What Champs means to me and what they've been doing is like, they really care and they're trying to those three E's: empowerment, education, and exposure," Leverette said.
In order for more than 50 young men to apply for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to go to the game, they had to write an essay describing why they wanted to go to the Super Bowl, as well as embracing the core values of the program.
Vondale Singleton, founder of Champs Male Mentoring, is committed to providing unique experiences. He said Dr. Eric Thomas, a motivational speaker from Chicago, who also mentors young men, paid for the entire trip.
"Somebody did it for us," Singleton said. "So [it's] this idea of 'I want to pay it forward. I want to help empower another generation. I want to educate, empower and expose to give them the opportunity to see the world.'"
"Remember these faces because we're going to be something big," said Leverette.
Their memorable faces will have a memorable experience.
