Hometown SportS Antioch NFL alum pays it forward to high school athletes in East County WardBoy Project symposium on April 30

By Jeff Weisinger Staff Writer

When he was growing up, Terron Ward had a plan to not just one day play in the NFL, but to be successful in life no matter what he did. The Antioch native, who now resides in Brentwood, went to and played for De La Salle High in Concord where he built his routine for success that eventually landed him with the Atlanta Falcons.

“If I had school at 8 a.m, I would wake up at 6:30 a.m., leave the house by 7:15 a.m. and get to school by 7:50 a.m.,” he said.

Along with his brother, eight-year NFL veteran, Super Bowl LV champion and De La Salle alum T.J. Ward, and their father, former Philadelphia Eagles defensive back and current De La Salle track coach Terrell Ward Sr., they are sharing those keys to success in a program at De La Salle on Sunday, April 30, called the “Better than Yesterday Student-Athlete Symposium.”

“The symposium is getting these kids to understand what it takes to be a successful student- athlete all around,” Ward said. “From being a good student to being a good athlete, to being a good manager, to being disciplined, self-sufficient, reliable, and accountable.”

“Most people who do make it have that same kind of discipline to do things the right way.”

The symposium is put on by the WardBoy Project – formerly known as the T.J. Ward Foundation when T.J. Ward started it in 2014 in Denver during his time with the Broncos. The name of the foundation changed in 2015 when Terron Ward joined the foundation after signing with the Falcons. The mission of the foundation remains the same: “to provide community outreach for youth through various channels within and through their section of the community by supporting them with resources, programs, and opportunities throughout the Bay Area,” according to the foundation’s website.

The full-day symposium is for student-athletes and their parents. Aimed at the underrepresented youth, the symposium is expecting about 50 student athletes.

Tickets to the symposium are $75 and include physical training sessions to assess strength, speed, quickness along with sessions on mental health and wellness, parenting tips for parents of student-athletes, and proper dieting. There are also sessions by Coach Bobby Bluford and the Ward family on tips to be a successful student-athlete.

The WardBoy Project will also award the first “TK Scholarship” at the symposium. The scholarship is named after the late Terrence Kelly, the former Spartans linebacker and teammate of T.J. Ward who was shot and killed just two days before leaving to go play college football at the University of Oregon in August of 2004.

“Basically we’re trying to keep his namesake alive, offering scholarships to underprivileged kids to attend De La Salle who may never get the opportunity,” Ward said of the scholarship.

For more information on the symposium and the foundation itself, visit http:// wardboyproject.org.

To view a slideshow, visit www.thepress. net/multimedia/slideshows