The owner of the New Orleans Saints may turn out to be a real live Saint himself. Mr. Tom Benson has helped a lot of people in and around New Orleans since obtaining the Saints franchise back in 1985. He is one of the most beloved figures down in the ‘Big Easy’.
When the then governor of Louisiana, Edwin Edwards, informed Tom Benson that the Saints were on the verge of being sold by owner John Mecom to a group of investors that were planning on moving the team from New Orleans to Jacksonville, he stepped up and bought the team. Mr. Benson is a native of New Orleans where local pride runs deep and football is a sort of religion.
Even after Hurricane Katrina when the Super Dome in New Orleans was rendered unusable and there was much talk about moving the Saints out of town once again, Mr. Benson went against the grain and economic good sense… and kept the team right there in New Orleans, once again.
2012 found the New Orleans NBA basketball Hornets under the ownership of the NBA, mostly because no one else wanted them. Tom Benson stepped up and saved yet another New Orleans sports franchise which has now evolved into the Pelicans, thanks again to the Bensons and is finally in a position to challenge for the NBA Playoffs next season.
Recently Tom Benson showed his true colors once again by donating five million dollars to ex-Saints player Steve Gleason and his efforts to fight ALS, otherwise known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Gleason and his family and supporters have been making heroic efforts on the part of patients with ALS in order to afford them greater freedom of mobility and communication.
Steve Gleason was diagnosed with 2011 in and has since lost his ability to speak and move but not to think and plan. His Team Gleason has become known worldwide for their efforts to help improve the lives of other souls stricken with this debilitating disease.
Mr. Benson’s generous contribution to Steve Gleason’s efforts will be concentrated on the Team Gleason House for Innovative Living located in New Orleans and scheduled to open this summer. The house will allow for 18 ALS like patients to live their lives more independently among people who genuinely care for them.
Tom Benson concluded, “Steve is part of the Saints family, but he is an NFL legend to those that he affects and we are most proud of him.”
