Mulching together and planting flowers early Saturday morning, Texans chairman and CEO Cal McNair and his wife, Hannah McNair, the Texans charitable foundation vice president, were busy volunteering at the Houston Texans YMCA.
This marked the Texans' 10th annual Texans Care Volunteer Day, and the McNair family was joined by Texans players Jon Greenard, Roy Lopez and Nico Collins, former Texans safety Eric Brown and defensive end N.D. Kalu, Chevron North America corporate affairs general manager Margaret Cooper, Texans cheerleaders and Toro. This was one of seven sites Saturday where more than 1,000 volunteers pitched in across the city, including the Rutherford B.H. Yates Museum and the Santa Maria Hostel.
Between the mulching, painting and power washing, it was an eventful day.
"This partnership means a lot," said Hannah McNair of an event partnered with Chevron and United Way of Greater Houston and supported by Ashley Home Store, BMW and Whataburger. "It's very special for us to be here, especially with Cal's dad (the late Bob McNair) and mom (Janice McNair) starting this. It's in the DNA of the Texans organization to help the community. We all come together. The Texans YMCA has a lot of different programs. It's made a big impact on our local community. Whenever they're in need, here we are."
The Texans are fostering a culture devoted to giving back.
"For the players to embrace it, it means so much," Cal McNair said. "They're proud to be here. They're exciting to give back. It's a belief throughout the whole company. The culture of the Texans is to give back and be a part of the community. It's something we really believe in. Everyone has adopted it. We try to do good things. It's what we believe in."
Cal McNair added that the Houston Texans YMCA being close to NRG Stadium gives the players an opportunity to stop by and interact with the youth that the organization serves.
"It's been a really good partnership," he said. "It continues to get better and serve the community and be there for folks. Dad spent a lot of time at the YMCA where he grew up. He was excited to have the kids here."
Greenard got some hands-on help from Cal McNair painting lines in the parking lot as McNair lined up tape to keep the lines straight. Lopez spent a lot of time power washing chairs by the swimming pool. And Collins grabbed a wheelbarrow to transport a lot of mulch.
"To help out in the community, it's awesome," said Greenard, a third-year defensive end who had a career-high eight sacks last season. "We're like-minded guys. It's about building that camaraderie and understanding our purpose, understanding our why. It's nice to be out here early in the morning. It shows the character."
Aaron Wilson is a Pro Football Network reporter and analyst and a contributor to Sports Talk 790.