Peyton Manning sends birthday gift to family of teen killed by drunk driver

Peyton Manning took some time earlier this week to bring a small amount of joy to a family that has been grieving the loss of a loved one for several months.

Tuesday would have been the 16th birthday of Logan Brown, a 15-year-old who was killed by a drunk driver back in March. Gayle Ricketts, Brown’s grandmother, wrote a letter to Manning recently explaining Brown’s tragic story. Ricketts says her grandson “idolized” the Denver Broncos quarterback.

“As a grandmother I felt like I should let Peyton know this young man idolized him and what he meant in his life,” she told WFIE-TV in Evansville, Ind.

Manning was apparently moved by the story, and he responded with a hand-written letter of his own and an autographed photo.

“It blew me away,” Ricketts said. “I called Charles (Logan’s father) when the letter came. I didn’t even open it. I called Charles to come over. I said the Broncos answered me.”

Logan had been a Manning fan since his dad took him to an Indianapolis Colts game when he was younger. Charles says Logan basically abandoned the Colts when Manning went to Denver because he only wanted to cheer for Peyton.

“To take the time to send something back to a situation in Evansville, Indiana that he probably doesn’t know anything about,” Brown said. “It’s important to see that they’re humans and for these other kids to see you never forget where you come from.”

Plenty of people have called Manning a class act throughout his career, but actions speak louder than words. That particular act said plenty.