Ex-Pats’ lineman’s generosity extends beyond foundation
Through his foundation that helps cancer patients and their families afford costly treatments, former New England Patriots offensive lineman Joe Andruzzi has distinguished himself as one of the most charitable and altruistic athletes the city of Boston has ever had.
Yet on top of all the help he and his wife Jen have lended to those patients, Andruzzi’s generosity and good deeds have not stopped there.
“Joe is very caring and it’s something that just comes from his personality and his heart,” said Andruzzi’s agent Kim Zayotti, of Blue Sky Sports Entertainment. “It’s just the way he functions.”
Ever since his three brothers — all New York firefighters — responded to the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, Andruzzi has continually been involved in charitable events honoring 9/11 survivors and first-responders.
In 2002, millions of people witnessed his support firsthand, when Andruzzi organized a trip for 100 New York firefighters to attend a Patriots game against the Jets at Gillette Stadium.
That same year, Andruzzi befriended a young man named C.J. Buckley during training camp and went on to help establish a trust to benefit children’s brain cancer research in his name, after Buckley died from inoperable brain cancer, according to the Patriots Alumni website.
Zayotti, who said she’s been working with Andruzzi for the past decade, said that she thinks his family upbringing, as well as his own battle with cancer, played a big role in shaping his generous temperament.
“Him and Jen are just salt of the earth people, they’re very loving and giving individuals,” Zayotti said. “For instance, when my mother passed away, they showed up at the wake. For me, I’ll never forget that.”
In 2013, Andruzzi’s generosity reached new heights, when he was photographed carrying an injured woman to safety during the immediate aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings. Zayotti said that he helped several others who had been injured by the blasts as well.
“It’s just Joe’s nature that he jumped into action,” Zayotti said. “He saw that there was chaos and saw that people were injured and went over to just start helping out and carrying them to safety.”
Andruzzi, 44, was picked up as an undrafted rookie free agent by the Green Bay Packers in 1997 and played nine seasons in the NFL. He was signed by the Patriots in 2000 and went on to win three Super Bowls with the team, in 2002, 2004 and 2005.
After being diagnosed with an aggressive form of nonHodgkin’s Burkitt’s lymphoma in May 2007, Andruzzi and his family moved back to New England from Ohio, and he underwent chemotherapy treatments at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. According to his foundation’s website, he received his last treatment two months after being diagnosed and has since remained cancer-free. Andruzzi and his wife have five children.