Finally Free (31 page)

“My comeback is far from over.”

 

I
'm so excited about the future.

I know some people may never forgive me, but I also know that I have asked for and received forgiveness from God. That, combined with the love of family and friends, helps me continue to try to live out the promises I've made and my commitment to taking full advantage of the second chance I've been given.

I'm trying to do all the right things: I'm trying to be a model citizen. I'm trying to be responsible, to be an ambassador, to be a great father. I want to show the world that I'm not just going to talk the talk; I'm going to walk the walk as well.

I'm doing everything I can to turn a negative into a positive. It's only by the grace of God that I have this opportunity before me. He has allowed me to go out and show the world that when you fall, you can rise again. You can fly again. But you have to be willing to put in the hard work. You have to be humble. You have to be obedient. You have to be willing to hold yourself accountable.

I'd be lying if I said this journey has been easy. The scrutiny and
negative talk aren't easy to deal with all the time, but I have to accept it.

I want my life to make a major difference all across the world to a lot of people. I want my trademark and my comeback statement to be: I hit the bottom, but with God's help, I also rose back to the top.

Tony Dungy says that if I stay on the right track, I can have that kind of influence. “As much as I like to go around and spread the gospel,” he said in an interview, “as much as I would like to talk to kids about staying in school and doing the right things and how important education is, there is going to be a certain group of kids I could never reach.

“They're going to look at me as an old ex-coach who doesn't really know what they're dealing with. But when Mike Vick talks to them, they know he has walked the same streets and he's been where they are. He's going to impact a generation that I know I never could. I think that is one of the things the Lord is going to do with him.”

I am blessed to speak frequently to youth and school groups, especially in conjunction with the Humane Society. It provides me the chance to discuss the ills of dogfighting and to urge young people to avoid the mistakes I made.

I tell them to use me as an example of what not to do, and to avoid dogfighting at all costs.

Ironically, many of the talks during the football season happen on Tuesdays, my off day and also the day of the week when I used to travel from Atlanta to Virginia to oversee our dogfighting operation.

I try to share my testimony in ways that translate to kids' lives as an example to stay away from all types of danger and to let them know they can accomplish whatever they set out to do. I talk about the severe consequences that resulted from my bad decisions. Just as you work hard to get somewhere in life, or to accomplish certain things, or to have prized personal possessions—having all of that taken away from you after you work so hard for it is a horrible, horrible feeling. That's the case regardless of the magnitude, regardless of the scale you're on or your position in life, whether you're white-collar, blue-collar, or whatever. It can all be taken away from you, and it will hurt.

My partnership with the Humane Society means so much to me. It all started when Wayne Pacelle, who heads that organization, came to see me in prison and let me know he believed in me. Since then, I've spoken at more than thirty Humane Society events around the country. The first one was in Atlanta. I'll never forget how nervous I was that day, but it went well.

It's an honor to be one of their representatives. I appreciate the opportunity to speak against dogfighting and to hopefully change people's perception about pit bulls. Some people think they are the worst dogs in the world, when they actually are among the smartest and friendliest breeds.

I'm happy to say that dogfighting is on the decline. Not as many
dogs are fighting and getting hurt. I never heard anyone talk about the evils of dogfighting growing up. I take this platform very seriously, and I want to shed a new light that dogfighting is harmful, inhumane, and unethical.

I really wanted to see some results from all the talks I had been giving to kids about the dangers of dogfighting, so I asked Chris Shigas, my public relations counsel, what I could do. I wanted to do more than just give my testimony, because I'm only one person and I can only talk to so many people. I wanted to be more of an advocate.

After talking to Chris, we took the idea to Wayne Pacelle, the president of the Humane Society of the United States. Wayne saw a great opportunity for me to come to Capitol Hill and draw attention to some of the inadequate animal welfare laws.

It was July 2011, and I remember walking with Wayne and Chris through the halls of Congress where there was this gorgeous, ornate architecture. I thought,
This is the real deal.
This wasn't some football field anymore. I wanted to make a real difference, and here we were.

Wayne and I gave our support for legislation that would make it a misdemeanor for anyone attending a dogfight or a cockfight. Now it is against the law to conduct one, but not against the law to attend one. And we also gave our support for legislation that would make it a felony to take a child to a dogfight or a cockfight.
As I said earlier, I was eight years old when I saw my first dogfight. Back then, police would come to the dogfights and break them up, but no one would be arrested.

That day in DC was more than Wayne and me voicing support on Capitol Hill for legislation. Our time was spent in private meetings with congressional staff, the black caucus, and other lawmakers. We also held a press conference to raise awareness for the bills. And during the press conference, the Humane Society showed a video of children at a cockfight. The video disgusted me, and I thought,
This has to stop.

I wanted to make real, tangible, and positive changes on behalf of animal welfare. The trip to Congress is another step toward fulfilling my promise to help more animals than I hurt.

Afterward, I did several big interviews with NPR (National Public Radio) and Fox News's Greta Van Susteren to let everyone know what we had been lobbying for. I'm just grateful that the Humane Society reached out to me, so that I could learn about animal welfare causes and be put in a position to help.

Between the 2010 and 2011 seasons, I had two different speaking engagements that were particularly meaningful to me.

First, I returned to prison—this time to talk to inmates with Coach Dungy, fulfilling a promise I had made to him earlier. Peter King covered it for
Sports Illustrated
.

It was such a pleasure to be in Coach Dungy's presence. I could listen to him talk all day. Every guy in that prison would have
come out and spoken to him if they could. They were all in the windows to see him.

Speaking to those inmates was very hard for me to do. I was nervous—wondering what I was going to say, how I would deliver. Peter King was a little nervous too; I could see he was uncomfortable. I tried to help him relax, which in turn helped me. We got through it. He realized everyone was cool.

I decided to just speak from the heart. I spoke about some of my experiences and tried to encourage the guys. I just wanted to give them some insight. I spoke to two different groups, and I had a Q&A time with open dialogue. We laughed and joked and had a great time. I was glad to have done it and plan to do it again in the future.

The other opportunity was a bit more unique. I was chosen by the students from the Camelot schools—an alternative high school program in Philadelphia that serves at-risk youth—to be their commencement speaker. My speech to the approximately 450 graduates included these words:

As you have chosen me, I want you to know that I've chosen you. I have chosen you to succeed. That's because I believe in you. You have proven your ability to overcome adversity, do the right thing, and finish school. You all are on my team. Take the lessons that you have learned, and apply them to your everyday life.

I was so blessed to announce that I would be funding $5,000
college scholarships for two of the students. It is a small way for me to provide hope and encouragement for others who are making the most of their second chance.

I've made it a priority in my life to dream again, and there's a Scripture passage that was shared with me recently that I find particularly encouraging. It's Isaiah 43:18–19:

Forget the former things;

do not dwell on the past.

See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

I am making a way in the wilderness

and streams in the wasteland.

That's my life right there. It's like a promise from God as I look ahead and move forward. It exemplifies His heart for redemption.

All good quarterbacks must have good vision—an ability to see what defenses are doing ahead of time and discern what plays will work. They need to know just how far to throw a pass so it will land directly in a receiver's hands. Vision for life is important too, and that's something I have more of now than ever before.

My vision is to carry out God's plan and not do anything to interfere with what He has in store for me. I do that by being the best family man I can be, by not making irrational decisions, and by not surrounding myself with people who are bad influences.
On and off the field, it's all about staying the course. All the accolades are great, and all the things I've accomplished are good, but it's leaving a legacy that matters.

Obviously, inevitably, people are going to say, “Mike Vick was this; he did this; he did that.” But remember me for what I accomplished after I matured—after the prison sentence.

I want to be remembered as a guy who never gave up, whether with my family, out on the football field, in a prison cell, or playing one-on-one basketball with someone in the neighborhood. To sum it all up, I would say one word:
resilient
. I stand firm in God, push through, and never give up—even in my darkest moments.