MEDFIELD – For a few hours on Tuesday, members of the Patriots organization – past and present – gave 40 members of the military a memory they’ll never forget at the Kingsbury Club in Medfield.
Dante Scarnecchia, Rick Cash, Carl Davis, Jonas Gray, Raekwon McMillan, Myles Bryant, Jahlani Tavai, Calvin Munson, Matt Sokol, Scotty Washington and Cole Strange were all on hand to play pickle ball as part of the NFL’s Salute to Service endeavor. One of the PA voices of Gillette Stadium and a regular on 98.5 The Sports Hub, Mike “Sarge” Riley was also on hand to emcee the event while Pat Patriot and a few cheerleaders were on hand as well.
Prior to the start of the event, Sarge introduced each member of the organization, but then Strange grabbed the mic and had a surprise for everyone. After thanking them for their service, Strange told the military members that they’ll be headed to the game against the Colts this Sunday.
“When Cole jumped on the microphone and said that (about the tickets), just to hear their reaction, you could feel the energy,” said Riley. “It’s supposed to be a really nice day with the weather too, so that’d a double bonus. I think it was really nice to have that reaction there and have everyone all excited for it.”
Each participant had a chance to play with one or more of the celebrity guests on hand and there was some intense competition, what else would you expect in a room full of pro athletes and people that have no problem making the ultimate sacrifice? For current Patriots players, even on an off day, competition is always a good thing, especially in this setting.
“I never stray away from competition,” Tavai said with a smile. “Whether it’s with the military, teammates or just ordinary people, I’m in. As soon as they told us this event was going on, a bunch of us decided to say ‘let’s do it’ because we love to give back. we’re grateful for these men and women who risk their lives out there on the battlefield and we appreciate all of them.”
The event meant a bit more to Tavai as well, who has a friend that served in the Marines and just so happened to be visiting the linebacker this week.
“Today was actually big for me,” he added. “I have a really great friend who was a nine-year vet who has served in the Marines and he just so happens that he was out here visiting, so that was just really good timing. It was really fun.”
At the end of the event, each member had a chance to grab a mini Pats helmet and walk through an autogrpah line, then head over to the restaurant at the Kingsbury Club for a little social event afterwards to cap off the special day.
“Obviously, the active duty military members here have chosen to support our country and fight for our freedom and protect our freedom every day,” Riley added. “I don’t think we appreciate all of hard work that these men and women do and how much they sacrifice for us to help make the world a safer place.
“This is just a really nice way for the Patriots and the Kraft family to have this event here with the active duty military members, it’s just a really nice day all around.”