2005 Pueblo Dinner and Silent Auction

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The Catholic Foundation recently held it's 2005 Dinner and Silent Auction featuring John Lynch as the speaker on Sunday, June 5th at the Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center.  Highlights of the evening included grants totaling $152,150 was awarded to several sites throughout the Diocese of Pueblo; John Lynch gave a superb talk on making dreams into a reality; Bruce Brandt spoke of the Catholic Foundation and all the accomplishments and how these endeavors were made possible. 
 

About our speaker. . .

A perennial Pro Bowl selection recognized as the elite strong safety in the NFL, the Denver Broncos’ John Lynch has made his presence felt both on and off the field.  The instinctive and savvy veteran and team leader is known as one of the hardest hitters on the field and one of the most generous men in the NFL community.  John was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and played 11 seasons with them and was instrumental in their development from a losing team to Super Bowl Champions.  In 2004, John signed with the Denver Broncos and immediately made an impact as a team leader and finished the season with his 6^th selection to the NFL Pro Bowl.  With his transition to Denver, John also turned his focus to making a difference in the Denver community through the John Lynch Foundation.  

John and Linda Lynch formed the John Lynch Foundation in August 2000 in Tampa, Fla. to develop young leaders and provide encouragement and positive alternatives for young people.   In a time when violence and irresponsibility seem to be glorified, the Lynches are determined to reach students and instill in them the drive to become effective community leaders.  Over the past four years the Foundation has received tremendous success and the Lynches have expanded the Foundation to the Denver and San Diego communities. 

In Denver, the John Lynch Foundation’s mission is to develop quality young leaders through its community programs: “Lynch’s Leaders,” a partnership with the Denver Broncos is a six-month leadership development program with the Boys & Girls Clubs, “John Lynch Star of the Month,” rewards middle and high school student-athletes for their athletic achievements, academic accomplishments and community involvement; “Lynch Family Legacy Scholarships,” which provides financial assistance to high school student-athletes who exemplify excellence in academics, community service and athletics; “John Lynch Salutes the Stars,” a community event where the area’s brightest student-athletes come together to be honored and disabled Star of the Year awards are given along with Teacher and Coach of the Year awards; and “Lynch’s Christmas Party,” which grants Christmas wishes for underprivileged children. 

Besides keeping busy with the daily operations of the John Lynch Foundation, John and Linda have been actively involved in many other community activities.  They have a very strong relationship with military men and women and make frequent visits to local military bases.  John also participates in events such as Metropolitan Ministries Thanksgiving Food Distribution, he regularly makes hospital visits to children confined to hospital beds, and he and Linda have worked with Kids Wish Network, Make a Wish Foundation, and Children’s Dream Fund to make various wishes come true for ill children.   Linda Lynch is also very involved in various community efforts.   Among other things, she has done various work with H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute where she has chaired the Saks Fashion Targets Breast Cancer event and has make numerous school visits to talk about the importance of being involved in the community.     

The Lynches have also been active members of the Catholic Community as well.  They participated in the Bishop’s Advisory Council for the Diocese of St. Petersburg and served as spokespersons for the Annual Catholic Appeal.  They were also involved in their local parish of Nativity Catholic Church in Rancho Santa Fe, CA. and St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Tampa, Fla..  Through the John Lynch & John Allred Celebrity Golf Tournament funds were raised to assist in the building of Cathedral Catholic High School.  John and Linda were also the recipients of the Judeo Christian Clinic’s Leadership Excellence Award for their work throughout the community and the Church.  

In honor of his charitable work through the John Lynch Foundation, John and Linda have received various awards and accolades.  John has repeatedly been the team nominee for the NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year award, and was also the Buccaneers nominee for the Byron Whizzer White award.  Other awards they have received are the Rotary Club’s Paul Harris Fellow Award, the Tampa Tribune’s People’s Champion Award, the American Ireland Fund’s Man of the Year award, Irish Magazine’s Top 100, the Leadership Excellence Award from Coach Don Shula, U.S. Sporting News’ Good Guys Award to name a few. 

In addition to his community efforts in Denver, John and Linda also keep a strong presence in Tampa and San Diego.  In Tampa, the Lynches have given more than 22 college scholarships and are committed to raising funds to endow the Lynch Family Legacy Scholarships.  They return to Tampa for various fundraising events to continue to work towards achieving this goal.  John and Linda also spend a great deal of time giving back to their hometown of San Diego.  Teamed with his brother-in-law John Allred, they formed the John Lynch/John Allred Celebrity Golf Invitational.  Since 1997, the tournament has raised more than $1 million for the Boys & Girls Clubs of San Diego Foundation, which has resulted in building a new facility and branch of the Boys & Girls Club, as well as other local charities including Cathedral Catholic High School and Torrey Pines High School. 

John Terrence Lynch was born September 25, 1971 in Hinsdale, Illinois.  Married to Linda, the couple splits off-season between Tampa and Del Mar Beach, California with son Jake (4/2/99) and daughters Lindsay (11/13/00) and Lillian (12/2/02).  John attended Torrey Pines High School in Del Mar, California, lettering in football) and baseball.  John was a fan of fellow Stanford grad and recent NFL retiree John Elway as a child, and attended Stanford University in part to follow in two-sport legacy of Elway and others.  His father, John, played linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and brother-in-law John Allred played for the Chicago Bears and Pittsburgh Steelers.