Peyton Manning provides kind gesture to family of boy killed by drunk driver

One can only imagine how much mail Peyton Manning gets, asking for this or that. Those who know him say it’s common for him to respond personally, whether it be to a random wedding invitation or something more serious.

In March, Logan Brown was killed by a drunk driver. He was 15, and a big Manning fan from Evansville, Ind. According to 14 News in Indiana, Brown’s grandmother sent Manning a letter, telling the Denver Broncos quarterback how much he meant to her grandson. Brown’s 16th birthday would have been Tuesday.

What the family got back was a surprise: A hand-written letter from Manning and an autographed picture. In the letter, Manning said he was honored that Brown was a fan of his, according to 14 News’ report.

“To take the time to send something back to a situation in Evansville, Indiana that he probably doesn’t know anything about,” Charles Brown, Logan’s father, told 14 News. “It’s important to see that they’re humans and for these other kids to see you never forget where you come from.”

“And I know Logan is up there looking down. He’s smiling. I think he will be happy,” Gayle Ricketts, Brown’s grandmother who sent Manning the letter, said.

It’s obvious Manning’s gesture meant a lot for the family during a hard time. In the comments of 14 News’ story, another person says that Manning did something similar after she wrote to tell him that one of her family members was killed in a car accident. A few of these gestures by Manning have gone public, but there are likely countless others he has done over the years that we never hear about.

A lot has been made of when the NFL’s only five-time MVP will retire, and we don’t know the answer yet. But it’s clear that when Manning does step away, the league is going to lose a great ambassador.

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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab