Minnesota Vikings' Aaron Jones pays it forward to kids who share his military upbringing

Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones is a 10-year veteran in of the NFL and his parents are veterans of the U.S. Army. 

Being a child of a military family means a lot to Jones. 

"Honoring them to know that I come from where they come from. Just how we relate," Jones said.

Both Jones' parents retired as Sergeants Major from the U.S. Army. He sees his childhood when talking with kids from military families.

Jones and the United Heroes League gave out 500 pairs of shoes to the kids. Fresh kicks can be nice when a kid starts a new school.

"It's definitely important," said Jones. "You want to start off school feeling the right way. Fresh and that's an easy conversation starter. Simple as hey, I like your shoes. That can start a simple conversation and lead to them being friends and now you don't feel alone."

Jones has done USO tours and always bonds with fellow players from a similar background, like Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty, or last year's Vikings teammate Jonathan Allen.

"Football is its own fraternity. You're gonna meet somebody you knows somebody who knows somebody," said Jones. "But the military world is as well, especially for military children. And being in the NFL, it's such a small community. You definitely find each other, you get to know each other. You definitely share stories or 'hey, were you ever stationed here, were you ever stationed here,' and a lot of times you find out you guys were stationed in the same place."

The movement and inconsistency of a military childhood might not go hand in hand with an elite youth sports career. But Jones found a way.

"One year I didn't play football because both my parents deployed. But other than that it was fun. Every two, three years I had to go and prove myself. Different areas of the world. Virginia, Texas, Tennessee is where I played most of my football. But I feel like it really established me for today's world. The structure of the NFL, being able to adapt to change quickly," he said. "You have to go and prove yourself every day in the world. So I really feel like it helped me get ready for life."

The Vikings face the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday afternoon.