Russell Wilson, Ciara Spread Christmas Cheer at Seattle Children's Hospital
Russell Wilson is taking a play from his R&B star girlfriend Ciara Harris' book and singing a duet with her to spread cheer at the Seattle Children's Hospital.
Wilson, the 27-year-old Seattle Seahawks quarterback, frequently visits sick children at the hospital and started bringing his 30-year-old singer girlfriend along earlier this year. On Tuesday, the pair visited one young boy and sang the spanish Christmas tune "Feliz Navidad" along with him.
"@DangeRussWilson and I Singing ¡Feliz Navidad! With This Sweet Angel Louis. His Little Whisper Is So Cute," Ciara wrote, posting an Instagram video of the experience. "Us, Well ... We're Doing The Best We Can. HaHa #HappyHolidays #GivingTuesday #WeWantToWishYouAMerryChtistmas."
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The athlete also created an Instagram post about the experience, and prompted people to donate to children battling cancer.
"¡Feliz Navidad! ¡Quiero desearles una Feliz Navidad con Louis y @Ciara ! @SeattleChildrens," Wilson wrote. "Donate to StrongAgainstCancer.org to help more kids!"
Last year, the Seattle Children's Hospital and Research Foundation launched a $100 million initiative to support research aimed at curing childhood cancer. After Wilson signed on to be the "team captain" in the initiative called "Strong Against Cancer" he explained why it was important to be involved in the initiative.
"Annually, pediatric cancers receive less than 3 percent of the National Cancer Institute budget, which is why it's so important for all of us to support initiatives like Strong Against Cancer," Wilson said last year in a Seattle Children's Hospital statement to the public. "The scientists working on immunotherapy have the treatment and the results to get us to a place where childhood cancer is no worse than a common virus. All that's needed now are the resources to bring it to every kid who needs it."
Although Wilson works hard on the football field, he spoke about finding much of his joy volunteering at the hospital.
"Sunday is game day for me, but my best day is Tuesday when I visit Seattle Children's," Wilson previously wrote in his blog on Seattle Childrens website. "All the amazing opportunities I've had on the field can't compare to helping kids whose lives are on the line."
Wilson said he started volunteering a couple of years ago, but has had his share of experience visiting hospitals when his father died from diabetes in 2010. He spoke about his own experiences helping him relate to families who are dealing with sick children in the hospital where he volunteers.
"I believe God has put me on this Earth to serve others. That's why there's nothing more fulfilling than walking into a child's hospital room and finding out how they're doing — listening to their stories," Wilson wrote in the blog. "All these kids are so brave and to be there for them and give them a boost is really important to me. What they don't know is how much they affect me: I get an even bigger boost from them!"
While Wilson said he wanted his legacy on the football field to center around him being considered a winner, he spoke about another legacy that he wanted to leave behind off of the field.
"In terms of my legacy off the field, I want to be a Christian man that helps lead and helps change lives and helps serve other people. It's not about me, you know," Wilson told reporters on the Media Day that took place Jan. 27. "It's not about me and it's about just helping other people. So that's kind of where I keep my focus."
