As Casey Cares moves deeper into the fall and we begin to send out our winter and holiday activities to our kids, we've been excited to help bring some amazing football experiences to our kids thanks to community partners!

It was a Baltimore Ravens day like no other for Ariana as she battles leukemia!⁠ Her mother Kiane said, "Thank you so much for organizing such an amazing experience for us. We enjoyed the pre-game field, tunnel experience and the game so much! Ariana was able to high five several players, but she was super excited to high five Odell Beckham Jr. and Lamar Jackson!"

"Our Ravens escort told her that Odell never stops to high five anyone so she was really excited that he stopped to give her a high five. She's had such a difficult journey and yesterday is now a very special memory for her that she will cherish for a long time. She also feels like her high fives helped the Ravens win the game. Thank you again for being responsible for and organizing such an amazing experience for her,"⁠ Kiane said.

Odell Beckham Jr. continued showing his care: Casey Cares child Tristan, also briefly met with the player during his on-field experience before watching the Ravens game with his family! 

His mother Tekeya noted, "When Tristan was 4 years old, he became very sick. After taking him to the hospital his dad and I learned that Tristan had Type 1 diabetes. From that point, things became very hard for us to adjust to. We begin to get him all the right care and equipment to help with controlling his diabetes." 

"Tristan now has the Dexcom G6 and the Tslim insulin pump. Things were going pretty good until January 2023 when Tristan's equipment had an issue. That issue that caused him to be hospitalized was for DKA (diabetic ketoacidosis) which sent him into kidney failure," she continues.

Tekeya concludes, "The doctors were able to revise the kidney failure and get Tristan feeling much better. Since then, Tristan hasn’t had any issues and his sugars are under control. Tristan is such a happy kid; he’s learning a lot about himself and what diabetes is and how it affects the body. Now at the age of 10, Tristan knows when to put his numbers in his insulin pump and what he can and can’t have." 

Out in the Midwest, Ohio families watched the Cleveland Browns play against their rivals! Braylon, diagnosed with lymphoma brought a few friends while Lucas, diagnosed with leukemia, and his family said, "the game was awesome! It was so fun!! Thank you so so much for it!!"

Thank you to The Cleveland Browns Foundation, Natalie Arteen and Marty Conway with M&T Bank, and Tasha Newsome with the Baltimore Ravens for coordinating and donating tickets to these special games! Want to donate football tickets for our critically ill kids to enjoy? Email them to our Program Director Summer Porter here!