Posted Monday, March 26, 2012 by Team Northwoods

Northwoods Proud to be DRIVEN to Help

To look at Roy Hall, you might think he’s never had a bad day in his life.

At six feet three inches, Hall is a star athlete who played wide receiver for The Ohio State University (OSU) Buckeyes and went on to play for the NFL. He is the president of an amazing charitable organization, the DRIVEN Foundation. Hall is charismatic and exudes positive energy, inspiring everyone around him to make the world a better place.

What you cannot see are the obstacles Hall has overcome. Those obstacles range from living with an abusive father addicted to heroin to working at age 14 to help his mother keep food on the table for his family. Hall does not resent these challenges because they made him the person he is today.

Hall recently shared his remarkable story with Northwoods employees to help us understand his motivation to give back to those less fortunate through the DRIVEN Foundation, a charitable organization Hall founded in 2008 with former OSU teammate, Antonio Smith. DRIVEN’s mission is simple:

“To serve means to provide somebody something they can’t provide themselves. That’s what the DRIVEN Foundation is all about,” said Hall.

In the beginning, DRIVEN offered football camps to young men in Central Ohio and surrounding areas. But as Hall and Smith taught the high school students football fundamentals and life skills, they quickly realized DRIVEN had the potential to impact many more people’s lives. Because of their dedication, DRIVEN now provides 15 different programs including mentorship and reading programs for Central Ohio children. DRIVEN also organizes the DRIVEN Food Truck, an annual outreach program that food to families for a week. Since its inception, the DRIVEN Food Truck has given away 220,000 pounds of food to nearly 3,500 families.

Northwoods has proudly participated in the DRIVEN Food Truck the past three years by supporting employees who volunteer their time (see picture above) and through contributions from the Northwoods Foundation, a separate nonprofit organization that provides financial assistance to people in need in the communities in which Northwoods employees work and live.

When talking with Northwoods’ employees, Hall stressed the vital importance of community partnerships and said ours had made such a difference in the success of DRIVEN.

“The only place that was willing to take a chance on my vision was Northwoods,” said Hall. “The Northwoods Foundation has really fueled the DRIVEN Foundation from afar. Everything we got done is because of Northwoods. Without you guys, DRIVEN would not be where it is today.”

divider-footerNorthwoods is honored to support the DRIVEN Foundation as part of our vision to serve the community.

To learn more about the DRIVEN Foundation and volunteer opportunities, visit staydriven.org or follow DRIVEN on Twitter @DRIVEN_. To learn more about the Northwoods Foundation, visit northwoodsfoundation.org.