My Mom's My First Fan

My Mom's My First Fan is a community event for Detroit's NFL Draft. This is a Free community event Honoring Metro-Detroit’s Football Moms from NFL Football Moms. There will be a “Where Detroit’s Football Moms Get the Game from the Pro Moms.” My Mom's My First Fan will be Sunday, April 21, 2024, 2 pm - 6 pm at the Marygrove Conservancy 8425 McNichols Rd. Detroit, MI 48221.

This event will feature an impactful in-person forum, spotlighting and celebrating the vital role mothers play in the lives of football players. The highlight of the event will be a panel discussion featuring the mothers of an NFL Draft hopeful, a current NFL player, and a retired NFL player. Pastor Dr. Mayowa Reynolds (Fellowship Chapel Church of Detroit & Principal of the Detroit School for the Fine and Performing Arts) and Comedian Coco (of Detroit Morning Radio for over 20 Years, HBO’s Def Comedy Jam, BET’s Comic View, Detroit’s Aretha Amphitheater host) will host the discussion. Khary Frazier of Detroit is Different and Herman Moore, Detroit Lions Superstar, and NFL Legend will welcome the event.

We want to offer a special event where we honor the Real MVP of the Black Family, the matriarch. With over 75% of Detroit's population being Black residents, the city boasts a legacy dating back to the 1950s, shaping Legacy Black Detroit. Matriarchal love deeply embedded in the culture permeates the city, with figures like Mother Waddles, Martha Jean “The Queen”, Delores Bennett, and Eleanor Josaitis serving as pillars rooted in the love of mothers. "My Mom's My First Fan Experience" engages Detroit's grassroots community, connecting with the matriarchal family structures defining the city.

There are over 80 Little League associations throughout Metro Detroit and 150 high school football programs. The mothers of all these players are the welcomed audience for this experience.

Presented by Detroit is Different, Team84, TeenHYPE, and Visit Detroit, this innovative event shines a spotlight on the journeys of NFL Mothers through the power of storytelling.

Led by entrepreneur and former NFL All-Pro Herman Moore, Team 84 LLC is dedicated to fostering growth and development in various sectors, including technology, entrepreneurship, and community initiatives. Through the Herman Moore Tackle Life Foundation, Moore aims to prepare young people for a bright future.

Since 2004, Teen HYPE has reached more than 35,000 Detroit-area youth with programming designed to help prepare them for the world. Every year, hundreds of students in dozens of schools receive adolescent health education that promotes future-oriented thinking, avoiding risky behaviors, and honoring their voices. We have also trained more than 600 teens as Peer Educators who apply their leadership in service to their communities and other young people.

Visit Detroit, a leading force in promoting the metro Detroit region on regional, national, and international levels, collaborates with local businesses, civic organizations, and government offices to showcase the area as a premier destination for conventions, business meetings, and tourism.

TeenHYPE will be providing a presentation about youth dating and relationships. Since 2004, Teen HYPE has reached more than 35,000 Detroit-area youth with programming designed to help prepare them for the world. Every year, hundreds of students in dozens of schools receive adolescent health education that promotes future-oriented thinking, avoiding risky behaviors, and honoring their voices. We have also trained more than 600 teens as Peer Educators who apply their leadership in service to their communities and other young people. These will be some of the resources given to the mothers.

The in-person event will host a resource fair for mothers of football players. Resources include the Umoja Debate Team (Umoja Debate League is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that uses debate as our vehicle to teach Detroit youth ages 11-18 transferable life skills, such as critical thinking, confidence, conflict resolution, increased literacy, and self-expression), mentoring from Building Black Brick Masters (Building Black Brick Masters, a grassroots group consisting of over 15 Detroit men representing multiple generations that are committed to helping boys and young men in Detroit live productive lives), and nutritional support from the Grub Bank (the Grubbank offers organic vegan meals, daily fresh salads to go, meal prep consultations and refrigerator and pantry organization services) led by Nedra Banks.

My Mom’s My First Fan: Topics of Discussion

The panel discussion and corresponding video content will delve into the following topics, offering a comprehensive overview of information tailored for mothers of youth football players in the Metro-Detroit area.

Football is a Business:

• Investment in Success: Explore the time and financial commitments in preparing your son for the NFL Draft, including camps, training, and diets. Discuss key financial considerations during his journey to becoming a football star.
• Essentials Coverage: Delve into the strategies for covering the costs of ensuring your son has the essentials. Examine the support from little leagues, high schools, and coaches and the process of discerning which support to accept or reject.
• Nationwide Journeys: Discuss decisions regarding travel for football stars and the financial preparations needed for high school football star travel.
• Building the Right Team: Explore ways to find the right agent, lawyer, accountant, publicist, and financial advisor for your son.

Football and Family:

• Balancing Act: Share insights on managing attention and care between the football star and other siblings.
• Support Networks: Discuss how to handle outreach from family and friends looking to attend games and travel with the team. Navigate requests for assistance in business, public appearances, and financial support.
• Public Figure Dynamics: Reflect on changes in approach due to your son being a public figure. Discuss preparations for your family to be related to a public figure.
• Dating Advice: Share advice given to your son on dating, and recount experiences of uneasiness about his choice of partner and how you dealt with it.

Football Losses:

• Injury Preparedness: Discuss mental preparation for the possibility of your son being injured. Share steps taken to prepare your son for this eventuality.
• Coping Strategies: Explore ways to console your son after football losses. Discuss strategies for encouraging him to develop confidence and interests beyond football alone.
• Dealing with Publicity: Share insights on preparing your son, yourself, and your family to handle bad publicity and media attention.

Host or Publisher Detroit is Different