A mom’s letter to Peyton Manning

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DENVER — It’s been a long week, with the cold weather and the Broncos’ Super Bowl loss, but we found one mom whose thoughts are sure to lift your spirits. Her open letter to Peyton Manning is getting a lot of attention.

Laurie Lattimore Volkmann is not a sports reporter or player, just a mom looking for a role model for her two young sons. She is also a lifelong, die-hard Broncos fan.

Laurie said, “I would name my kids after Broncos if my husband would let me get away with it.” And after the Super Bowl, she admits she was sad and frustrated. But she was more angry at the sports commentators who were criticizing Peyton Manning’s legacy.

So the journalism professor wrote down her thoughts and posted them on her blog. She said, “So I wrote it really to be therapy for me after the Super Bowl. I thought a lot of Broncos fans and my family would get something out of it.”

And plenty of people have. They shared it over and over again on Facebook and Twitter.

It was even published in newspapers around the country.

Here are some of the thoughts from her letter: “Mr. manning, whether you win another game, your accomplishments in football are nothing short of remarkable. I want you to know that this mom of two young boys (who already recognize you’re different from the others) believes your legacy has never been stronger. Legacy is something handed down that matters. It is something that matters to young players and athletes and kids looking for mentors to help them find their way. You hand down examples of work ethic, of courage to come back after a career threatening injury. Of humility in victory and graciousness in defeat.”

Laurie told us, “Peyton Manning has brought an extra dimension to professional sports that I don’t think we emphasize enough, because it’s not a player blasting out against other players or doing a crazy dance on the field or being loud or obnoxious. I don’t want to settle for second best. But it’s about being professional in the way you compete.”

She has heard from lots of people, with tons of positive comments. She hopes the team takes note.

Laurie said, “They don’t need a little blog from a mom in South Carolina who is a huge Broncos fan to lift their spirits, I hope they read it, I hope Peyton reads it. I hope if he reads it, he knows people recognize … notice that, it’s a good thing to be the way he is. I think how Peyton could go to Richard Sherman and ask him after losing in dramatic fashion how his foot was, that’s an incredible example of how you can still be a good person and competitive athlete. He is everything a champion really is.”

LINK: Laurie’s open letter to Peyton Manning

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