MIAMI GARDENS, FL. – The Miami Dolphins, joined by local officials, community partners, minority restaurant partners, local media and members of the South Florida community, hosted the first annual Football UNITES™ Jason Jenkins Day of Service on Monday, Oct. 30, to celebrate the life and legacy of the organization’s late Senior Vice President of Communications and Community Affairs.
More than 330 volunteers, including Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix, Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Dolphins and Miami Open staff, spent the day serving 900 hours across nine community projects in South Florida on what would have been Jenkins’ 49th birthday. In total, more than 22,000 members of the local community were impacted through these projects throughout Miami Dade and Broward counties.
“Jason was a unifier of people, and he dedicated his life to bringing people in South Florida together through service and the power of football,” said Miami Dolphins and Hard Rock Stadium Vice Chairman, President and CEO and Managing Partner of the Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix Tom Garfinkel.
“We are proud to continue to honor Jason’s legacy and carry on his impact by serving the South Florida community he loved so much. Thank you to the local officials, media members, Football UNITES™ community partners and members of the organizations who joined us to celebrate and remember our friend Jason. We miss him dearly, but his legacy will continue to live on and inspire us to make a positive impact in South Florida and beyond.”
Jason Jenkins dedicated himself to serving the Miami Dolphins and South Florida community for 14 years. Beginning in 2015, Jenkins served as Senior Vice President of Communications and Community Affairs and oversaw the organization’s front-facing brands, including marketing, public relations, social media and community efforts for the Miami Dolphins, Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Open and Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix. During his tenure, he led the charge for various community initiatives including the Junior Dolphins youth football program, the Miami Dolphins Foundation Food Relief Program, the Miami Dolphins Football UNITES™ program and was an influential part of the Dolphins Challenge Cancer.
Jenkins created community programming that served as a model for the NFL, most notably his social justice initiatives and Football UNITES™, whose mission is to unite groups of different races, genders, sexual orientations, identities, abilities and faith around the power of football. Jenkins passed unexpectedly in August 2022, leaving behind an incomparable legacy of impact in South Florida. On the one-year anniversary of his passing in August 2023, the Miami Dolphins announced the Football UNITES™ Jason Jenkins Day of Service, to be held annually on his birthday as a way to celebrate his life and carry on his impact.
Community service projects held by the Miami Dolphins on Monday, Oct. 30, included:
- Adopt-a-Dune Project: Over 50 volunteers took part in a beach preservation project at the Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park in Dania Beach. Participating staff planted more than 1,000 dunes in an effort to restore and protect the native habitat for nesting sea turtles, migratory birds and shorebirds along the coastline.
- Broward Rescue Mission: 10 members of the organizations served lunch to formerly homeless residents at the Broward Rescue Mission in Hollywood, Fla. Volunteers engaged with residents and served lunch to more than 45 people.
- Junior Dolphins Mini Football Clinic: Miami Dolphins and Hard Rock Stadium Vice Chairman, President and CEO and Managing Partner of the Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix, Tom Garfinkel along with Dolphins Challenge Cancer Board Chair and wife of Jason Jenkins, Elizabeth Jenkins joined over 25 volunteers as the Junior Dolphins hosted a mini football clinic during recess at Excel Kids Academy in Miami Gardens, Fla. Dolphins staff led more than 80 students through football fundamentals and playing techniques as they participated in games and drills.
Volunteers in action at Feeding South Florida, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023 in Miami Gardens, Fla. (Indya Vassell/Miami Dolphins) - Feeding South Florida: Over 100 volunteers helped inspect and package meal boxes at Feeding South Florida. Members of the organizations were joined by local South Florida media members as they packaged a total of 24,000 pounds of food that will benefit more than 20,400 people in the South Florida community.
- Keep Miami Gardens Beautiful: Miami Dolphins Vice President of Community Affairs Kim Miller along with Miami Gardens Mayor Rodney Harris and Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida Judge Marcus Bach-Armas joined over 30 volunteers to participate in a clean-up project in Miami Gardens, Fla. Participants collected over 350 pounds of litter around Miami Gardens’ Snake Creek and contributed to the improvement of the community.
- Miami Rescue Mission: 15 members of the organizations served lunch to formerly homeless residents at the Miami Rescue Mission in Miami, Fla. Volunteers engaged with residents and provided meals to more than 250 residents.
- SOS Children’s Village: 15 volunteers participated in a beautification project at the SOS Children’s Village in Coconut Creek, Fla. Participants decorated two homes that benefit the 14 family members that reside in the homes, took inventory of items for the Villages’ annual Light Up the Village event and served meals from Miami Dolphins Minority Restaurant Partner, Reggae Beets, to more than 50 children at SOS Children’s Village.
- SunServe: Over 15 volunteers participated in a beautification project at SunServe in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Volunteers painted and decorated tiles to renovate the SunServe group room which serves over 500 members of the community annually.
- Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA USA): Dolphins Challenge Cancer Board Chair and wife of Jason Jenkins, Elizabeth Jenkins and President of the Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix, Tyler Epp joined 50 volunteers to pack care packages with hygiene products at the YWCA in Miami Gardens, Fla. Volunteers packaged over 300 hygiene kits that will work to support over 1,200 family members and ensure that those experiencing homelessness and financial hardships have access to hygiene necessities.
Photo/MiamiDolphins
Stephanie Fonseca – Miami Dolphins contributed to this column