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Former Purdue star Kelly Butler making, distributing face masks to those in need during COVID-19 crisis
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A former Purdue and NFL offensive lineman is using the current COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to help those in need. Kelly Butler, who most recently played in the Canadian Football League with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, is lending a helping hand during this crisis.
CTV News in Winnipeg recently featured Butler on its segment “Local Kindness,” after the former Boilermaker started dedicating time to make and distribute face masks to those in need, free of charge. Butler’s non-profit organization, Playing 4 a Purpose, wanted to make sure it was helping any way it could.
“The need was there. The youth saw that people needed help and we wanted to make sure that we were able to provide that,” Butler said. “It’s kinda like, when you look at sports having to make an adjustment to be able to keep playing in the game and keep being able to serve in your community, we saw this was a need. We had the ability to help support and we just started utilizing our resources.”
The masks consist of four layers and are made out of high-fiber materials. The masks have been donated to those working on the front lines during the pandemic, as well as those considered essential workers during this time.
Butler played at Purdue from 2000-03 and was a sixth-round selection in the 2004 NFL Draft.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB