A Quiet History of Giving;
Through the loving efforts and guidance of her parents, Connie acquired a genuine sense of
family values and the importance of a good education. This provided her the strong foundation that she ultimately instilled in her own family and continues to share with others.
My late husband Walter Payton, a football legend who was stricken with cancer and
succumbed to this heart wrenching disease in 1999, Connie Payton has borne the challenges presented her with quiet grace and determination that has emerged as her trademark. These qualities have served her well throughout a lifetime spent in positions of community service
and in promoting family issues and family awareness. In recognizing the importance a
supportive loving family can provide, she has sought throughout her years of public service to draw attention to those issues that can divide and indeed destroy a family.
Achievement:
During Walter Payton’s life, he became a silent entrepreneur of giving, and Connie Payton
shared in this commitment to make a difference in people’s lives, especially the innocent lives
of neglected and abused children.
Today, through the conception of the Walter & Connie Payton Foundation, Connie
continues on with the integrity and dignity of the Payton name in caring for these thousands
of children who found themselves as wards of the state. It is through this foundation, that
Connie continues to focus on what she considers her most important obligation and that is
working closely with the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services. The foundation
hosts a “Holiday Giving Program”, which year after year helps provide thousands of gifts for
in-need children at Christmas, and is currently its largest program. In August, the “Back to
School Drive” is sponsored by the foundation to provide school supplies to these children to
help them start the school year with all the necessary supplies.
With Connie’s belief, that she was blessed to be a blessing to others, she strives to have the foundation research the possibilities of additional educational, mentorship, and sporting
programs for these children to be a part of in the future.
A critical illness knows no boundaries, and learning about cancer firsthand prompted Connie
to establish the Walter Payton Cancer Fund. This fund seeks to aid in finding an ultimate cure
for cancer, and focuses on supporting efforts to find effective treatment to mitigate the ravages
of the disease. In addition to campaigning for this worthwhile cause, Connie felt compelled to reach out to others who have also found themselves subject to this disease. Thus, her book “Stronger Than Cancer” was introduced. This inspirational book extends to its readers an
insight of how loved ones pull together to beat the odds, even if they know they can’t. It also
shares the triumphs of those that won their battle with this deadly disease. Like Connie, this
book proves to be honest and straight from the heart, and more importantly......it gives hope.
As a spokesperson to bring public awareness to the family unit, the list goes on and on. To
name a few, she was the guest speaker stressing the importance of family during “Parent’s
weekend” at Loyola University, the keynote speaker for Commencement for the University
of Chicago, and many Chamber of Commerce community events within the State of Illinois.
Connie also brings her enthusiastic support as a keynote speaker on behalf of quality health care. Again, to name a few, Humana Health Care, U.I.C. Guild, Midwest Nursing Spectrum,
and the LaGrange Memorial Hospital for “Cancer Survival Day”. Connie also is a member of
the Board for the Cancer Treatment Research Foundation in her endless effort to change the
face of cancer at the bedside of patients today.
Connie Payton does not consider any of these cited accomplishments as her own personal achievements. To those who know her personally, Connie is a woman who acknowledges
and understands the problems and adversities of others and caringly attempts to resolve
those needs.
