GREEN BAY – Jordan Love’s NFL career was barely underway the first time he went to mom, Anna, and voiced his intention to start a foundation.
He didn’t know all the specifics at that time, but the Packers quarterback felt a burning desire to give back as soon as he was put in a position to do so.
Not for notoriety. Not for praise. But because it was the right thing to do. After all, Love was once the little kid in Bakersfield, Calif., who idolized NFL stars and had a dream of playing the game he loves at the highest of levels.
“He’s very humble,” Anna Love said. “He’s never gonna be that person that pounds on his chest and says, ‘Look at me. Look what I’m doing.’ He’s going to do everything quietly.”
For those reasons and many more, Love was honored Thursday as the Packers’ nominee for the 2025 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award. Established in 1970 and renamed in 1999 after the late Hall of Fame running back, the award recognizes players for outstanding community service activities off the field, as well as excellence on the field.
In his third season as the Packers’ starting QB, Love has become the face of the franchise in Green Bay. The 27-year-old quarterback has led the team to back-to-back playoff appearances while throwing for 10,948 yards, 79 touchdowns and 28 interceptions over 54 regular-season games (45 starts).
As his star rises, Love has used his growing platform to amplify causes close to his heart with his Hands of 10ve Foundation, which aims to inspire and empower children from all backgrounds to engage in sports, promoting physical and mental well-being.
A core part of the initiative is running youth camps both in Bakersfield and Milwaukee for area kids. In July, he hosted 600 participants for a football camp at the University School of Milwaukee that included instruction, competitive drills and lectures.
The sight of Love interacting with all the kids brings a smile to the face of his wife Ronika, a professional volleyball player who remembers what it’s like to be a kid at a youth clinic and wanting to meet her favorite athlete.
“My favorite thing is whenever he’s interacting with the kids at his camp,” said Ronika Stone Love. “He’s very hands-on. He’s not somebody who just shows up because he’s getting in the hours and leaving. He enjoys every moment that he gets to spend with these kids, joking around.”
The other aspect of Hands of 10ve close to Love’s heart is raising awareness about mental health and suicide prevention after losing his father, Orbin, when he was just 14 years old.
Love and his foundation have partnered with groups both in Wisconsin and California that support mental health awareness, including suicide prevention walks, fundraisers and other giveback opportunities.
“With this, there is a mental health side,” Jordan Love said. “My family has been impacted. We’ve had suicide in our family, so the mental health awareness and bringing awareness and understanding people aren’t alone. Whatever they’re going through, they can get through it.”
Love has worked diligently to foster stronger relationships between law enforcement and the community to honor his dad, who was a police sergeant with the Bakersfield Police Dept.
Orbin was a strong supporter of the Bakersfield chapter of the Police Activities League, which promotes the prevention of juvenile crime and violence by building relationships among kids, cops, and communities through positive engagement.
Carrying on his father’s legacy, Love proudly represented PAL as part of the NFL’s My Cause My Cleats campaign last month.
