Darius Slayton nominated for Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year

During the 2008 recession, the Slaytons lost their home. They moved into an apartment and relied on the help of others to fill some basic needs. It was a life change that profoundly influenced Darius.

“I think it put a determination in him,” Pamela Slayton said. “He later told me, ‘Mom, I don’t ever want to see that look on your face again.’ I don’t remember what look I had, but I guess he saw some sadness or whatever. It built in him a determination to fight through and to never see his family in that situation again.

“Going through something like that builds character, because you have to work your way out of that. He saw us do that. He and his sister had to share a room for a while. They were teenagers, so I know that wasn’t easy for them.”

Slayton’s community work is truly a family affair. Early in his career he established his Left-Hand Right-Hand Foundation. Pamela is the executive director. Eddie is on the board of directors. Maileka, their cousin Jessie Crawford and numerous other relatives are deeply involved.

“If you come to any event of mine, you’re gonna see my people there, like my grandma, my aunts, my uncles, my cousins,” Slayton said. “If you walk around in my camp and see the people who are wearing the volunteer shirts, they’re probably related to me. If they’re not related to me, they’ve known me for a long time or are close family friends. Whenever I have these things, I never have a shortage of hands to help.”

And there are many things. His foundation annually hosts a free youth football camp in Atlanta and provides meals and household items to families during the holidays. He has a close, long-term relationship with the NYPD-led Far Rockaway, Harlem and Bronx Giants and is deeply involved in programs that work to improve police-community relations while providing youth with academic resources and guidance as they look to graduate high school, and ultimately college.

To raise awareness for the programs, Darius served as an ambassador to educate fans when the Giants and MetLife teamed up to launch a co-branded First Responders hat which raised more than $75,000 to benefit first responder organizations, including the Far Rockaway and Harlem Giants.

Darius’ commitment to the programs earned him the Outstanding Community Service Award, which he received at their annual gala alongside the boys he mentors. Slayton has personally provided more than $100,000 worth of funding and resources for the programs. Under his leadership and with the Giants’ support, 150 boys across 20 schools in three boroughs participate in the programs. With 30 NYPD officers operating the programs, 1,080 hours of after-school tutoring are provided to the boys each year. Since the inception of the program, no boys have had to repeat a grade or take summer school, and the programs have graduated over 15 boys onto high school.

Slayton has been part of the Giants’ efforts to grow the game of girls flag football and served as a captain during their annual Flag Field Day event. Pamela is a retired teacher, so Darius emphasizes the importance of education to all the youngsters.

Slayton hosts an annual car show in Queens attended by more than 50 drivers. He created the event for youngsters to learn about potential career paths outside of football. The drivers share their life stories and speak about their professions, including architecture, accounting, graphic design, or law.

“I’m a car person,” Slayton said. “I go to car shows all the time when I’m home, specifically exotic cars – Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Porsches, Mercedes. For somebody to have a Lamborghini, they have to have the money, right? They’re doing something to get that money. I meet so many people at these events and they always teach me stuff that I never would have even thought would be a job that could be that lucrative.

“That’s where the idea came from. I knew it would be dope to get the kids to see the cars, because cars are cool and young boys like cool cars. If I’m bringing my teammates around, we’re all big. But seeing a 5-foot-6 regular dude jump out of a Lamborghini, it’s closer in their eyes. They can say, ‘that guy is not so far away from me.'”

Slayton doesn’t know how long he will play in the NFL. But he is certain long after his last day in uniform, he will be active in his and his parents’ communities.

“Obviously, football is not forever,” he said. “But as long as I am able, I will do my best to continue to do the things that we’ve done, and continue to find new things, new ways to help people, new people to help.

“As long as you’re able, you should help, you should give, you should try to help other people do better, those types of things. That will always be something that’s part of my life.”