At 12 years old, Najee Harris was making his way through middle school as he and his family spent time at the Greater Richmond Interfaith Program shelter in Richmond, California. Ten years later, Harris is still spending time at the GRIP shelter, but things are a bit different than they were back then.
In January, Harris and his teammates at the University of Alabama finished an undefeated football season by beating the Ohio State Buckeyes in the national championship. Just a few months later, he was picked up by Mike Tomlin and the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
To celebrate his recent accomplishments, Harris threw a party for the children at the GRIP shelter in California. Harris brought pizza, chicken wings, cupcakes, goodie bags and more for the kids at the shelter.
"Just to see him as a grown man with this kind of opportunity for him today and to know that he lived in this shelter among many other places their family had to move around and lives as a homeless man just speaks to the anything is possible," Greater Richmond Interfaith Program Executive Director Kathleen Sullivan told ABC 7.
“Doing this really makes me and my family feel better, just giving appreciation and everything. It’s a subject, especially in the Bay Area, that needs to get shed light on. The more that we are together, the more we can make everything happen, especially in good ways," Harris told KXAN.
"You know for me moving up I’m getting more attention, more cameras and stuff, that’s good. Because it’s shedding more light on the situation."
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