Twitter Campaign Works: Peterson Calls Ailing Teen

Just two days after losing to their arch rival, the Green Bay Packers in the wild card round of the playoffs, and just 8 days after coming up 9 yards short of breaking Eric Dickerson’s single season rushing record, Adrian Peterson found a way to put others first. On Monday Peterson, who is well know throughout the league as an up standing citizen and moral person, made a very important phone call to Blake Cognata, a 17-year-old from Rochester, New York, battling a rare form of cancer called Ewing’s sarcoma, reports Kare11.com.

Blake was diagnosed almost a year ago with this rare form of cancer that attacks the bones. Blake was forced to quit playing football and lacrosse in high school. In October Blake was hospitalized as the cancer had spread to almost every bone in his body and as pain became increasingly intense. Blake often lives in a deep sleep caused by high doses of pain medication, but in a brief and serendipitous moment, Blake was lucid to receive an invigorating phone call from his favorite player and hero, Adrian Peterson.

Social media is a powerful tool that most people used to rip on the Fighting Irish on Monday night, but Blake’s friends and family used this powerful tool to help a loved one. Around 8:00 p.m. Blake’s friend and family started tweeting with the hashtag #APCallBlake. This particular use of social media originated when the hashtag #TebowCallMatt successfully got Jets QB Tim Tebow to contact a victim of a car  accident in the hospital last December. Within 90 minutes, Blake’s cell phone rang from a number from Oklahoma.

Peterson and Blake talked for several minutes, minutes that in his mother’s words, made Blake glow the rest of the day. Peterson called from his personal cell phone and told Blake to keep the number and that Blake could call Peterson in the future if he needed someone to talk to. Peterson and Blake discussed faith, health, and not giving up. Obviously Peterson is not an expert on cancer, but faith, health, and not giving up are three things in which I trust Peterson has plenty of insight. Between the call and the offer to continue a helpful relationship, it reminds us however rare, that not every superstar falls short of being the role model we all desire them to be. Thank you AD.