Tim Tebow Foundation

According to Autism Speaks, about 1 in 59 people are born with autism. Through research done by the Miracle foundation, about 8 million children are living in orphanages throughout the world, and over 80% of them have a parent that is still alive. The Tim Tebow Foundation is an organization that helps orphans, people with autism, and anyone with medical needs globally. The foundation’s mission is, “To bring faith, hope, and love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need.

” It follows through on its mission by offering several different programs, each unique to a specific audience.

A few of these are Night to Shine, Orphan Care, Timmy’s Playroom, and the annual Tim Tebow Foundation Celebrity Gala and Golf Classic. It is a non-profit organization based on a Biblical worldview. The Tim Tebow Foundation is helping people all over the world, ranging from orphans to autistic people to anyone in need of medical assistance. It is helping children and adults feel loved, needed, and have what they need to thrive in their community. Although the Tim Tebow Foundation strives to help several different issues in the world, it has programs to focus on each problem. One thing this foundation helps is autism. Autism is primarily caused by the passing of genes from parent to child, and any child born to older than average parents has a higher chance of receiving this disorder. Studies show that the rate of males being diagnosed with autism is about four times higher than that of females (Autism).

The amount of money invested in care for people with autism had exceeded $268 billion in 2015, while projected to $461 billion by 2025 (Autism). The Tim Tebow foundation offers a program specifically focused on making sure that people that have been diagnosed with autism are aware that they have a place in society and are assured that they are loved by many. This program is called Night to Shine. This is an event hosted by many churches throughout the world and only possible through the help of volunteers. Night to Shine is open to anyone over the age of 14 with special needs. Churches will set up a “prom” for special need kids, dressing them in tuxedos and dresses and transporting the teenagers in limousines. The kids are treated like kings and queen, as the night is solely centered around them. The main purpose of this event, like all of Tim Tebow’s others, is to teach the Gospel and let everyone know that God loves them. and is open exclusively to special needs kids over the age of 14 (Shine). The most recent Night to Shine event hosted, which was on February 8, 2019, required the help of about 200,000 volunteers, along with the partnership of 655 churches worldwide. It was attended by about 100,000 guests in 24 different countries. The numbers of volunteers, churches, and guests have only gone up in the last three years. In 2017 it was held by 375 churches in 11 countries with the help of 150,000 volunteers and attended by about 75,000 guests (Movement). 2019 was the marker of the fifth year anniversary of Night to Shine (Shine).

The next things that the Tim Tebow Foundation is trying to help are adoption and the needs of orphans. These are areas in need of much attention, indicated by the shocking numbers of today's orphans and foster children. About 8 million people throughout the world live in orphanages, while another estimated 5 million live on the streets without a place to call home (Problem) (Statistics). On top of this, another 500,000 are being put into foster care in the United States alone. Although the number of orphans around the world is high, about 80% of them still have at least one parent still alive (Problem). The main cause of children becoming orphans is HIV/AIDS. About 17.9 million children have been abandoned due to this disease. Most adoptions happen with a family from America adopting a child from another country (Statistics). The Tim Tebow Foundation runs a couple of programs to help these causes. The first of these is called Orphan Care, which gives what orphans need on a day to day basis. Orphan care provides shelter, food, medical needs, clothing, and education (Orphan). Along with these things, it also provides a platform for sharing the Gospel with many people that have not yet heard of it. One story that comes from this program involves a boy named Frantzky. Two staff members were walking when they heard a weird noise. They then followed the noise, which led to the discovery of a young boy. This baby had clubbed feet and special needs.

The staff members asked people in the area about the baby. They received an answer from a woman nearby, who said his name was Frantzky. She also stated that the mother had abandoned him multiple times. Knowing this, the two people set out to find Frantzky’s mother, in which they were successful. After this, the two gained more background information on the boy, including the fact that he weighed just 13 pounds as a three-year-old. He had also been in and out of an orphanage, along with being neglected without anyone to care for him. The staff members ended up bringing him into a nearby program, which also partners with the Tim Tebow Foundation, called myLIFEspeaks. There he received surgery and everything he needed to be healthy. He now has a great life and has also attended Night to Shine (Frantzky). The next program that is offered is very similar to Orphan Care. This is called Adoption Aid, and it financially stabilizes families to be able to adopt children all around the world. The foundation gives families what they need in order to be able to adopt a kid and care for them properly (Adoption). On the medical side, they have two more programs available. One of these is called Timmy’s Playroom.

Timmy’s Playroom is used to build playrooms in hospitals around the world. These rooms are sports themed with chairs, toys, playgrounds, televisions, and different sorts of games (Playrooms). The purpose of this room is to let kids be able to take their minds off of their sickness and play like any other kid. The last outreach focused in the medical field is a hospital built by the Tim Tebow Foundation. It is called the Tebow CURE Hospital and is located in the Philippines. The hospital has thirty beds inside and was built in 2014. Over 3,500 people have come to God, almost 2,700 have been through surgery, and the hospital has received over 13,000 patient visits (CURE). Through all of this, the foundation remains with the same goal in mind, which is to help people in need and show them the love of God. The Tim Tebow Foundation was founded by Tim Tebow in 2010, because of his love for the Philippines. Tim Tebow grew up in the Philippines, where his parents were missionaries. Tebow was inspired when he met a boy named Sherwin during his time in the Philippines. Sherwin’s village portrayed Sherwin as cursed because he was born with backward-facing feet. Once Tim Tebow shared Gospel and spread the love of God throughout the village, everyone in it began to realize that God’s love is for everyone no matter what they look like. This once in a lifetime experience motivated him to create a foundation with the purpose of sharing the Gospel (Tebow).

The Tim Tebow Foundation consists of paid staff, as well as volunteers all around the world. God has used this ministry in incredible ways. Through this organization alone, thousands of people have come to know Christ as their savior. Thousands more have heard the Gospel preached to them through the foundation. While Tebow was in college at the University of Florida, he was a star football player. Every game Tebow would wear eye black with a Bible verse on it. He also won the Heisman Trophy Award in 2007 as a sophomore, only gaining him more popularity among all age groups. The next year, he led the Florida Gators to two national championships, where he was named most valuable player of the final game. While at Florida, he won many games and broke many records. All of this just widened his platform for sharing the Gospel, and he became known for his faith. He eventually made it to the National Football League, where he became recognized for his trademark move labeled as “Tebowing.” This became a known pre-game ritual of his where he would pray on the field before each game in a certain position. People from all over the world would imitate this, increasing his popularity by even more. He played for several teams before moving on to commentating football games. Although all of the talent he has been blessed with, he is also a baseball player for the New York Mets. All of Tebow’s fame and glory was used to glorify God.

Many people in Tim Tebow’s position would have given themselves all the credit and be prideful about their place. Although Tebow could have easily exalted himself, he decided to humble himself time and time again for God’s plans. Tim Tebow’s ministry has shown millions the love of God. Tebow, of all people, was the right person for the job of spreading the Gospel. The Tim Tebow Foundation has been, and remains, a great instrument for God’s work. No matter what anyone’s outward appearance is, Tim Tebow and his organization are willing to share the word of God with them. Whether it be helping an orphan feel loved and cared for, letting an autistic child know they are welcomed by others, or helping someone in need of medical care, the Tim Tebow Foundation opens their services to anyone in need.

The Bible says in Matthew 28:19, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” Tebow is doing just this through the Tim Tebow Foundation. He is unashamed of his beliefs on and off the field, demonstrating God’s will in almost everything he says and does.

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