After 19 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Head Coach Mike Tomlin stepped down from his position this week. The move came after the Steelers lost a playoff game to the Houston Texans 30 to 6.
It's not clear what he'll do next. Most sources say he has no interest in coaching next year and is leaning more toward broadcasting, though if he were to coach, Bleacher Report suggests that the Atlanta Falcons would be a top destination for him, and this Falcons fan has no objection to that.
I'll admit that I've never been a big Steelers fan, but I've always had a lot of respect for Tomlin as a coach and as a person. Something I read about him earlier today made me respect him even more.
In 2018, Tomlin accompanied a nonprofit organization that works to stop child sex trafficking on a trip to Haiti to meet the children who were at risk, speak with the families of children who'd been kidnapped, and hand out medical supplies and other necessities, as well as bring awareness to the situation. He met with a man who ran a Haitian orphanage. That man's own son had been kidnapped at just three years old and was still missing several years later.
The coach called the trip "heavy" and said he couldn't stop thinking about his own children — he and his wife, Kiya, have three, including, at that time, a 12-year-old daughter. The experience made him think about what life would be like if he woke up one morning and found that his own daughter was missing from her bedroom.
ESPN documented some of the trip and said that over half of the children Tomlin met with were orphans, which puts them at greater risk for being sold into slavery. The coach said that he also learned that traffickers rely on "chaos," like government corruption, natural disasters, and poverty, to strike, so they have a better chance of flying under the radar. That's another reason why children in Haiti are at a greater risk.
But Tomlin pointed out that this isn't just a "far away thing that occurs in other places."
According to Youth Underground, "The U.S. accounts for almost 52% of global human trafficking with the sex trafficking of minors accounting for the largest percentage." It's a $150 billion a year industry and the "fastest-growing illicit trade in the world."
Tomlin, who is a devout Christian, later appeared on The 700 Club and pointed out that human trafficking is tough to look at, but that's "one of the reasons why you've got to look at it." He said, "As difficult as it is to fathom, it's probably just as tough not to take action once you've crossed the bridge." He also said that it's so big, some days all you can do is pray for the traffickers to have a change of heart.
But here's what he said about the trip that really stood out to me:
I think about the divisive times at home right now, and if we all got an opportunity to see some of this, we'd realize how silly we are... and how blessed we are.
He's so right. That's a theme that remains heavy on my mind lately. Geopolitics and foreign policy are of great interest to me, but the more I research and write about these topics, the more appreciative I am that I was born in the United States. As I see body bags filled with Iranian protesters or see people standing in line to get a basic ration of food in Venezuela or see people dying on the streets from curable diseases because they lack medical care in Cuba, it is a constant reminder of how blessed we are.
I'm glad the former Steelers coach gets that. Far too many don't, like the Hollywood director who stood on stage at a stupid awards show the other night and screamed about living in a dictatorship. I'd like him to chat with the Venezuelan journalists I know who had to flee their country because they spoke out against Nicolás Maduro about what a dictatorship is really like, but I digress.
Tomlin is no longer involved with the organization he went to Haiti with, but he is heavily involved in numerous other causes, such as helping veterans, hungry families, and unprivileged youth. He's also a mentor and advocate for young men, teaching them the importance of becoming strong leaders, both at home and in their communities.
His faith is strong, and his heart is in the right place. That's why, no matter where he ends up professionally, I have no doubt that Tomlin will continue to be an asset to others in need. And I wish him all the best. Good luck, Coach.
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