Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Raekwon Davis is a big man at 6-foot-7, 330-pounds, but he also has a big heart when it comes to giving back to his community.

The Meridian native has a hometown giveback program called Rae’s Elves, which provides essentials to causes in the city of Meridian. The third annual Rae’s Elves event benefitted Hope Village for Children, a local nonprofit that supports neglected and abused children and their families, on Wednesday night.

“Normally our efforts contribute to the entire city of Meridian, so this year we wanted to take a targeted approach,” Davis’ publicist Valyncia Johnson said. “We definitely wanted to create an intimate space where Raekwon can actually speak to the kids and he can provide them with some words of encouragement.”

Davis was not able to attend the event because of obligations related to his NFL career, but he talked to the Hope Village children and answered their questions over video call.

“He’s living proof that you can follow your dream and you can make it out of a difficult situation,” Kathy Parrish, Hope Village’s head of community outreach, said.

Davis spoke about his life and some of the struggles he has experienced throughout it.

“Ain’t nothing y’all did that I didn’t do, but I found a way to make my situation better.” Davis said. “I just wanted to better my life and get out of Meridian.”

Davis cosponsored the event alongside streetwear brand Sprayground. Rae’s Elves gave Hope Village some essentials, including cleaning supplies and paper products, and the children received pizza and gifts.

“Raekwon grew up as an at-risk teenager, and we have at-risk teenagers at Hope Village that can really learn from his story and how he overcame obstacles,” Hope Village Director of Development Casey Culpepper said. “Our children enjoy any kind of extra-special Christmas activity. This means a lot to them because the attention is on them.”

Rae’s Elves and Hope Village were brought together by United Way, a nonprofit organization that works to strengthen communities. Hope Village has been a partner agency of United Way for 22 years, and United Way helps NFL players give back to their communities through a partnership with the NFL Players Association.

Executive Director of United Way of East Mississippi Kym Parnell said most people focus on young children when giving back to communities, so she wanted to focus on meeting the needs of Hope Village’s older children with this event.

“It feels amazing,” Parnell said. “This will be something that they remember for the rest of their lives.”