Peyton Manning sent a birthday gift to a fan who died in a car crash. (John Leyba, The Denver Post)
Peyton Manning has a long history of quietly interacting with his fans, sending letters or autographed memorabilia to strangers who have for years rooted for him from the stands or from the comfort of their couch.
The latest kind gesture by the Broncos’ quarterback: a birthday gift to one of his fans in Indiana who was killed earlier this year by a drunk driver.
Logan Brown, 15, was killed in March after a collision with another man whose blood-alcohol content was four times the legal limit. Brown’s grandmother, Gayle Ricketts, penned a letter to Manning to share Logan’s story and to tell Manning how much her grandson followed him and how big of a role Manning played in his life.
On Tuesday, which would have been Logan’s 16th birthday, Manning mailed a handwritten letter and an signed photo of himself with the Denver Broncos’ logo and the message “In memory of Logan Allen Brown,” according to a report by .
Logan’s father, Charles, said the gift from Manning has been inspirational.
“To take the time to send something back to a situation in Evansville, Indiana that he probably doesn’t know anything about,” he said. “It’s important to see that they’re humans and for these other kids to see you never forget where you come from.”
This, of course, isn’t the first kind gesture by Manning.
Late last year Manning had sent a to a woman in Indiana who lost her husband before their first child was born. The woman named her son Peyton, because the husband was devoted Manning fan from his days with the Colts.
And in January, he sent a personal note and autographed jersey to the man whose wife and children were .
