Ryan O’Callaghan knows the support student-athletes receive from their schools. When he played football at Cal he had his rent and food covered. Now many of those athletes who once relied on resources from their school are left, at the very least, finding their own meals.
Now O’Callaghan is turning the resources of his foundation to help some of these LGBTQ student-athletes who now find themselves back at home, away from their dorm room and meal services.
To be sure, O’Callaghan acknowledges that some athletes — particularly NCAA athletes — would need to check with their compliance officer at their school to find out if they can get outside help during this coronavirus crisis to put food on the table and pay rent.
Yet he also knows that many more athletes — particularly club-sport athletes — are largely free to accept financial help, given they are outside the NCAA’s framework. There are also athletes who are still students but whose eligibility has run out.
“There’s a need right now amongst student-athletes, and I have an ability through the charity to help,” O’Callaghan, self-quarantined in his home in Redding, Calif., told Outsports. “And that’s the whole point of the charity, to help LGBTQ student-athletes. And now is as good a time as any. Obviously the charity wasn’t originally organized for exactly this, but I think it’s a good thing to do.”
To apply for help through the Ryan O’Callaghan Foundation, LGBTQ student-athletes should head to the foundation’s website. O’Callaghan requires evidence that the applicant has a financial need, is a current student, and is an athlete (club or varsity) at their school.
You can also find the Ryan O’Callaghan Foundation on Facebook.
