Saints LB Vilma plans to visit Haiti after Super Bowl game

As one of the 16 NFL players of Haitian descent, the New Orleans Saints star linebacker Jonathan Vilma will goes to Haiti after the Super Bowl game is over to make physical contribution to the relief effort.

Vilma, who will start at his position for the Saints this Sunday, has home in Miami, but Haiti is his parents’ homeland. There is a large Haitian community in his hometown in Miami, and the NFL star has been involved in raising cash, via a special tee-shirt, to help rebuild a country where members of his family still live. Vilma says he wants to be there himself once his football duties are over.

“In the position I’m in right now where I’m really restricted in what I can do, it’s really about doing something positive, doing something effective right now and then being more efficient once the season is over with,” Vilma told reporters. “In general, my intentions are to go down there and be productive. You hear a lot of people just going down and saying, ‘Look at the devastation,’ and that’s what they’re reporting back. Well, that’s a given. That’s obvious. I want to go down there and help, whether it be to clear out the devastation, try to help build homes, whatever it is I want to go down and not just look around and say it’s a sad situation. We all know it’s a sad situation. What can I do to help the situation?”

Among the 16 NFL players of Haitian descent, there is a player as famous as Vilma, in No. 85 Indianapolis Colts jersey, Pierre Garcon. The third-year wide receiver will also play in Sunday’s Super Bowl but has a different plan in helping people in Haiti. Garcon lift up a Haitian flag on the field after the Colts beat the New York Jets to reach AFC Championship. He also has helped a Christian group with their fund-raising efforts. He is now planning to present the Haitian again during the Super Bowl.