TakeTimothyOnTour

Big Man Big Heart Hall of Fame Ambassador, Timothy Donovan, is going on a kindness tour. He’s traveling to watch the Seminoles play LSU in New Orleans, to Louisville, to NC State, and Syracuse. When Dillan asked him to put together a “ripple effect,” initiative, the first thing he thought of was to give back to children who are going through tough times dealing with illnesses and diseases in Children’s Hospitals by donating one of his favorite books to help them have a more positive outlook on themselves and their place in the world.

So, Timothy will be touring the country with Noles fans and stopping at Children’s Hospitals in New Orleans, Lousiville, Raleigh-Durham, and Syracuse to donate boxes full of copies of the Book “Rumple Buttercup” by Criminal Minds star Matthew Gray Grubler for the children to read and enjoy. He’ll also be donating books to Wolfson’s Children’s which serves the Tallahassee-Jacksonville communities, Cincinnati Children’s, Dayton Children’s, and Beacon Children’s Hospital when he travels to South Bend to watch Notre Dame play Marshall. Although he can’t make the Miami game, Big Man Big Heart will donate books to Nicklaus Children’s Hospital for him. If you’d like to join Timothy and Big Man Big Heart in this kindness tour, please DONATE and SHARE this fundraiser with as many people as you can via social media and email. While we’re all hoping the Noles will pull off BIG WINS in all of the cities we visit this season, we know that the Noles Family is generous and kind and what better way to show that than to GIVE BACK to sick and needy children in the communities our team is playing against this season! This is the epitome of sportsmanship. Let’s collectively show that college football is SO MUCH BIGGER than what happens on the gridiron.

Words from Timothy about what this fundraiser means to him:

A year ago, Dillan was so kind to start a fundraiser to get my family and I to Tallahassee to watch his first football game at FSU. I never expected the response people had and all the support everyone gave us. I knew at some point I would love to do something to pay it forward.

As some of you can imagine, my life hasn’t always been easy. I’ve gone through over 50 surgeries. I’ve dealt with depression and anxiety since I was around 9 years old. I’ve had to deal with all of my medical setbacks as well as not being accepted by others on top of that. People don’t often see past my wheelchair or my trach and they don’t give me a chance to get to know me. This has caused me to not really know how to interact with others because I’m always worried of what they think of me.

In 2019, Matthew Gray Gubler wrote a book called “Rumple Buttercup.” This story is about a character who doesn’t necessarily look like “normal kids”, and he’s afraid of what people around him think of him. This book really resonated with me because I know what that feels like. This book helped me see that it’s totally ok to be different and to love myself for who I am. I really feel this message will be of great help for other kids who may be going through similar situations like me. As well as for those kids who may be afraid to reach out to someone who may not look like them. This book is important because it teaches you to love yourself as well as for others to be more accepting.

This upcoming football season my family and I will be traveling to 6 games to support Dillan and the rest of the football team. As an ambassador for Big Man Big Heart, I’m hoping to help spread this message of love and acceptance by donating “Rumple Buttercup” books to Children’s Hospitals where we will be traveling to for the football games. I would also like to donate some books to Dayton Children’s & Cincinnati Children’s where I go for my medical care. Cincinnati Children’s has a special place in my heart. They saved my life almost 4 years ago when I had a massive internal bleed and came very close to dying. Since we are also going to South Bend to watch the Notre Dame - Marshall game, I would like to donate the books to the Children’s Hospital there as well.

I really hope you will consider helping me with a donation so I can purchase these books to donate. I appreciate all of the love I’ve received from both FSU & ND fans. It’s truly an amazing feeling knowing people care for me even though they may not personally know me.

I want to thank my good friend Dillan for giving me the opportunity to continue to help others through Big Man Big Heart.

Please HELP us make this happen. DONATE and SHARE!!

If you are traveling to some of the games this year and you see Timothy, please don’t hesitate to stop and say HI! He LOVES meeting Noles (and Irish) fans! If you are coming to the Boston College or Florida games, he will be at the Big Man Big Heart tailgate on the Legacy Walk. If you take a picture with him and post it, please tag #taketimothyontour!