Jarrett Payton, son of Chicago Bears legend Walter Payton will host the 2012 Jarrett Payton Academy Youth Football Camp from June 11 to 13 at Mooseheart Child City and School in Mooseheart, IL.

The camp is an event of the Jarrett Payton Foundation, which is committed to positively impacting the lives of children —physically, emotionally and psychologically by creating and providing programs that present them with opportunities designed to develop their leadership skills and enrich their lives.

The camp is a three-day summer skills camp geared toward enriching lives and building confidence in young men grades four to eight through football.

Participants will leave the camp with further education in specific football skills and knowledge, as well as leadership skills, wellness tips and strengthened relationships with peers.

The fourth to fifth grade camp takes place from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. and the sixth to eighth-grade camps from 1 to 4 p.m.

Registration before or on May 15 is $100 and $125 thereafter.

For more information call )847-922-3420, email info@jarrettpayton.com or on the web at www.jarrettpayton.org.

Jarrett Payton is coming out with an All-American Wheat Ale from Argus Brewery and it’s referred to as a “craft beer.”

“My dad was always a craft beer admirer and he would always talk to me about what a craft beer means,” Jarrett said in a statement announcing that the inaugural pour will be at Public House on Mar. 8, doors opening at 5:30 and glasses opening at 6.


(csnchicago.com)

The University of Miami 2001 Baseball and Football National Championship teams were honored at halftime of the Cavaliers Hurricanes game last night. Check out our exclusive photos below!

ELGIN — Friends and family are what are most important in life, giving back is part of being a good person, and children should always believe they can do whatever they set their minds to do, Jarrett Payton said.

Payton, the son of the late National Football League and Chicago Bears great Walter Payton, was at the Elgin Salvation Army on Wednesday to talk to children there about teamwork, but also talked with them about what should be important in their lives.

Hannah Reynolds works with the children’s Spark Academy program at the Elgin Salvation Army, and asked Connie Payton — whom she knows “a little bit” — if her son would be interested in speaking to the Elgin group.

Each Wednesday, the Salvation Army holds the Spark program for Elgin children ages 3 through 18. The night includes singing and devotions, as well as musical classes and homework help time, Reynolds said.

The program is just a year old, brought to Elgin when Salvation Army Captains Fred and Nancy Mead came in as the new leadership at the Elgin location.

Payton walked into thunderous applause from the 100 children assembled on Wednesday — applause that he videotaped on a cellphone and promised to upload to his Facebook page.

The 30-year-old, a former NFL player himself, told the children about his connections to Elgin. For kindergarten through second grade, he attended Elgin Academy. When he was in his early teens, he also stepped in to help a friend with her dance recital and performed on stage at The Hemmens Cultural Center — a location where he saw many performances in his younger years.

Teaching giving
A recently published book on Walter Payton contains allegations of infidelity and abuse of painkillers. But his son told a different side of his father, including sharing a story about a family shopping trip right before Christmas.

His father took the 11-year-old Payton to Toys ‘R’ Us in Schaumburg after the store had closed. Walter Payton told his son that he could have any toys he wanted, and that he had to pick out toys for his sister, too. But instead of going home with those toys, the Paytons stopped at an apartment complex. All of those toys instead went to a family who was out of work and wouldn’t have had a Christmas if not for his father’s help.
“That taught me the value of giving back. You have to get to know the person next to you” and find out about his or her life, he said. “That was the first gift my dad gave to me … the first time I really understood giving.”

Family, friends and faith — and the place those things should have in their lives — is another lesson he learned from his father before his untimely death in 1999, when the younger Payton was just 19 years old and about to leave for college at the University of Miami, where he was a Hurricane for five years.

That experience — going to college across the country — is where he learned how to rely on friends when family wasn’t nearby. While many of his high school friends attended college at Notre Dame or Wisconsin and could drive home on the weekends, going home for him meant scheduling a flight back. So he ended up spending time with his classmates and fellow players. They were the people he relied on through that tough time in his life, he said.

“Life is hard, but you have to make your life simple,” Payton said. “The biggest thing, for me, is family and friends.”

He also learned the value of hard work. When he was a junior in high school, the younger Payton was disappointed when his name was not included in the Chicago Sun-Times list of the best high school football players in the region. That made him work hard every day to ensure his name would be on the list the following year. It was that determination, followed with good grades, that got him into Miami, Payton said.


(suntimes.com)

The son of former Chicago Bears great Walter Payton expressed his appreciation to the NFL Network for their upcoming documentary on his father, despite author Jeff Pearlman’s presence in the hour-long piece.

In Pearlman’s book, "Sweetness: The Enigmatic Life of Walter Payton," Pearlman reported that the elder Payton abused drugs and had extramarital affairs.

"I hope people see the documentary for what it is, and I think it’s a great piece," Jarrett Payton told the Tribune. "Pearlman’s in it, so I don’t want people to discredit it and not look at it because he’s in it. I want them to really see if for what it is and just watch it."

The documentary airs at 9 p.m. (Chicago time) Thursday.

Payton admitted it has been a difficult last few weeks ever since the revelations in Pearlman’s book. His father passed away at age 45 after a bout with a rare form of cancer.

"But I don’t hold grudges against anybody, and I’m speaking from my heart," Payton said. "Everybody has a job, to write or do whatever they do to the best of their ability. We all have to feed our families. So I understand that. It’s just hard for me to be 30 years old now and to have your life in a book or in the paper. Some of the stuff was true. Some of it wasn't.

"It’s hard because someone passed away and is not here to defend himself. But my family and I have gotten so much stronger through everything. We have to really thank the Bears fans here in Chicago because we’ve gotten so much love."

Payton previewed the documentary and is interviewed in the piece along with his mother, Connie, and sister, Brittany. Former Bears coach Mike Ditka also appears.

"I don’t think my dad knew how much he was loved until he got sick," Payton said. "I hear stories about my dad every single day. But it takes something like this to see how much he really truly affects people. They truly, truly loved him.

"With every bad, there’s some good. We’ve gotten stronger.  As long as my family’s OK, I’m fine. A lot of what’s going on in the last few weeks has just made me reflect on my life and my relationship with my dad. He was my best friend. He really was. He was the best dad in the world because he taught me everything. He taught me to be the person that I am. I’ll take being the person that I am today over any money in the world. My joy and my happiness is the most important thing. And I appreciate my dad for showing me the way.’’


(wsbt.com)

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JOLIET — Jarrett Payton, professional athlete and son of football legend Walter Payton, gave a little history lesson Thursday at Joliet Township High School.

“For some of you young kids out there who might not know who my dad was, my dad was the greatest player to ever play the game of football,” he said.

Hundreds of freshmen erupted in cheers and applause in the West Campus auditorium. It was an inspiring sight, given that Walter Payton retired in 1987, before any of these students was born. The Chicago Bears running back was inducted into the National Football League Hall of Fame in 1993, also before any of these freshmen was born.

The students were very young when Walter Payton died in November 1999.

Nevertheless, Jarrett’s history lesson stuck, and the freshman crowd gave him round after round of applause Thursday.

They laughed at his jokes; they listened to a song, played on YouTube, that the younger Payton wrote for his father and family; and, at the end of the presentation, a couple of students even got to dance with him on stage.

Payton came to Joliet West on Thursday to discuss another kind of history — the life stories of these freshmen.

His message to them was simple: These four years are big years. Enjoy this time, study hard and build friendships.

Payton listed his own football accomplishments — particularly at the University of Miami and for the NFL’s Tennessee Titans. However, he emphasized his own high school days at St. Viator in Arlington Heights.

“I’ve played in national championships, I’ve played for the World Bowl Championship, I’ve played in Tennessee. But the one thing that I think about the most is high school,” he said. “I think about my last game in high school. We lost against Marmion Academy in the first round of the playoffs my senior year.”

Specifically, he compared his college years to high school: “We beat Nebraska (in the 2001 national championship). And then we lost to Ohio State the next year in the Fiesta Bowl. But I still think about high school. I still have the same friends from high school. This is the time when you really, really start to shape yourself and you get to know who you are as a person.”

“Don’t take it for granted, because it goes by so fast,” he said.

Freshman Jordan Siebers said, “He knew what he was talking about. He wanted us to be successful. He didn’t want us to be put down by what other people think of us.”

Freshman Ismarie Deeter’s favorite part of the speech was Payton’s tribute to his father as the greatest football player ever. He also credited his father for not pushing him to play football. Jarrett played soccer till his junior year in high school, when he switched to football.

“My dad understood; he loved anything that I loved,” he said.

Jarrett also emphasized the importance of academics.

“It doesn’t matter what your last name is. It doesn’t matter who you are. It really doesn’t matter how much money you have. The biggest thing that it comes to, when you’re at this age right now, is your education,” he said.

Payton declined to comment on the controversial new book written about his father. “Sweetness: The Enigmatic Life of Walter Payton,” by Jeff Pearlman, alleges that Walter Payton had extramarital affairs and told friends he wanted to kill himself.

After the presentation, Payton commended the Joliet West audience. He recalled the moment when he filmed the crowd screaming and cheering. He was here to motivate them, but their energy caught him as well.

“To be able to be around kids — they inspire me,” he said.


(suntimes.com)

Jarrett Payton will be the keynote speaker at a breakfast hosted by the Downers Grove Area Chamber of Commerce and Industry Oct. 4.

Payton is a motivational speaker and son of the late Walter Payton, former Chicago Bears running back and member of the NFL Hall of Fame.
Jarrett and his wife have established the Jarrett Payton Foundation working with Chicago-area schools to implement anti-bullying messages and programs to encourage safe environments for young people.

The breakfast buffet will be from 7:30 a.m. to 8 a.m. and the presentation will be from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.

To register, visit www.downersgrove.org or call (630) 968-4050. The cost for chamber members is $25, non-members $35. Tabletops cost $50.



(mysuburbanlife.com)

After spending the last 14 years running the ball everywhere from Arlington Heights to Miami to Amsterdam to Montreal to Hoffman Estates, Jarrett Payton stopped running this year.

“It was weird to give up,” Payton said. “But there’s more to life than playing football.”

And the 30-year-old Barrington native has started running harder than ever to keep up with all of his keening interests.

As Payton enthusiastically shifts from topic to topic, he punctuates the changes with a high-pitched laugh that sounds remarkably similar to a particular Bears Hall of Fame running back.

•The radio career: What began last year as a three-days-a-week gig on chicagolandsportsradio.com (“The Jarrett Payton Show” on M-W-F from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.) has mushroomed into appearances on WMVP 1000-AM.

Did you notice his presence Sunday night on the station’s postgame Bears coverage?

“I’ve always had a passion for radio,” Payton said last week while sitting in his studio on South State Street in the Loop.

Last November on the anniversary of his father’s passing, Payton hosted a “Remembering Sweetness” show and used his contacts to get a star-studded cast to call in: Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders, Jim Brown and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

“It was so huge,” Payton said. “I couldn’t really wrap my head around what happened until I got done.

“I take it as a responsibility to keep my Dad’s spirit alive. As long as football is around, he will be around.”

•The writing career: He’s putting together a book tentatively titled “Letters to My Dad.”

“It’s stuff I’ve been writing to my dad for years,” Payton said. “I wrote him a letter when I went to (the University of) Miami. I wrote him a letter when I got married (in 2009). Hopefully we can do it by Father’s Day. I think it will be motivational.”

•The beer career: Working in conjunction with Chicago-based Argus Brewery, Payton thinks he will have the first product for his “JP” line of beers within the next month.

He envisions the “JP” private label taking a place next to “312” and “Goose Island” at Chicago’s taps.

“I want to get into the market,” Payton said. “I want to know everything from the bottom up. I’m learning a lot.”

He’s learning nothing comes easy in the business and brewery worlds, but Payton believes his limitless energy and unforgettable surname can help him succeed.

“I’m actually going to come in and do the deliveries,” Payton said. “You’re going to see me bringing in the kegs. I’m going to put in the sweat equity.

“And if you put my beer in your bar, I’ll make appearances there. Do shows from there. I’m excited.”

•The volunteer career: He has worked for years on behalf of the Walter and Connie Payton Foundation, but Jarrett wants to do even more for the community.

He started the Jarrett Payton Foundation recently to address more causes he wants to solve. When he speaks at schools in October, he will focus on anti-bullying programs.

“I’m just trying to add on to what I was taught by my parents,” Payton said.

With all of his passions, it’s hard to believe he finds time to repair to his home in the western suburbs.

“I’m working on it all,” he said. “It’s just me, my wife and a couple friends. I don’t sleep that much, but it’s cool.”

He still finds time to dream about running again, but not in a Payton way. In a Daley way.

“I think I was a born politician,” Payton said with a laugh. “I’ve talked about running for mayor. Maybe in the next 15-20 years.”


(dailyherald.com)

Jarrett Payton Running Chicago Marathon 2011 for Team Sweetness: MyFoxCHICAGO.com

A professional football player, an aspiring musician, an internet radio host and the son of bears legend Walter Payton, Jarrett Payton does it all.

This October, he'll be running the Chicago Marathon in his father's honor with Team Sweetness. Payton joined us to tell us more.

For more information and to register, go to www.teamsweetness.com

Have you heard the saying, “It’s who you know?”  Taking that to another level, especially in this economy, it’s “Who knows YOU!”  Networking has been a trademark of how I’ve built my brand, gotten my message out in a noisy world and of course, stand shoulder-to-shoulder within the community I serve to get real-time feedback in how I can better provide solutions to existing problems.

Chicago may be called “Second City” but in my opinion, second to none when it comes to finding events literally EVERYDAY to meet hungry, excited and motivated people to help syngergize in making your American dream a reality.

Since meeting Jarrett Payton over Twitter, thanks to a #FF (Follow Friday) tweet out from Steve Green and guesting on the Jarrett Payton Show, I’ve been impressed with the events Jarrett creates to connect others as well as benefiting their family, child-oriented charities.  Namely, the Walter and Connie Payton Foundation and Jarrett Payton Foundation that is dedicated to neglected, abused and underprivileged children in addition to Brittney Payton (Jarrett’s sister) speaking on the importance of being an organ donor.

As you can see from the pics at Public House Chicago, it all comes back down to the basics of people meeting people and allowing the relationship buildling process begin.  At the end of the day, we ALL do business with people we know, like and trust.



(newsonqueue.com)

Unless it starts anew with another generation, the era ofthe Payton family running backs is over.

Jarrett Payton, son of Bears icon Walter Payton, has retired.

He has decided to hang up his shoulder pads at age 30, although he might have been able to make it to 34, thereby matching the jersey number that he and his father wore.

Jarrett Payton’s career included stops in the NFL, NFL Europe, the CFL and most recently with the Steve McMichael-coached Slaughter of the Indoor Football League after he played college ball at Miami (Fla.). All that after being a soccer star at St. Viator.

‘‘It’s been a long time, a long road, a long journey,’’ he told Quick Hits. ‘‘I played for the fans. They were the reason why I went to the stadium every day. Without them, I was nothing.

‘‘I did a lot of things most people wish they could do. I would have thought soccer would have taken me all over the world. But football took me to Amsterdam, Tennessee, Miami and Canada.

‘‘It was a big decision, but life goes on. There are other things that I want to accomplish.’’

Among them is to become an accomplished broadcaster. He has a show on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with Ernie Scatton from 10 a.m. to noon on chicagolandsportsradio.com.

Something says football isn’t entirely out of Jarrett’s system.

‘‘If I have a boy, and he wants to play football, I’ll coach him to the day that I die,’’ he said. ‘‘I don’t want to go to games anymore. I don’t want to sit in the stands till I have a son or a daughter that wants to play sports.’’

Click here to order Jarrett Payton’s proCane Rookie Card.



(suntimes.com)