Mom Couldn't Afford Health Care

NFL linebacker Bradie James was still playing football at Louisiana State University when tragedy struck his close-knit family. He lost both his mother and his father within a few months of each other.

See also: Navigating breast cancer treatments.

Just as tragic as his mother’s death was the sacrifice she made during the battle she lost to breast cancer. She gave up her health insurance and ended her medical treatment so that her husband could use the money to battle liver disease.

Bradie James decided he had to act. He finished college, landed a spot with the Dallas Cowboys and launched a mission to honor his mother. Today his Foundation 56 (his uniform number) fights breast cancer and helps women in need get free screenings.