Pro Football Hall of Fame Coach Tony Dungy and his wife Lauren told NBC’s Today Show earlier this month that they have fostered more than 100 children thanks to their decision to never turn away a child in need.
Lauren Dungy said, “We love children. Children are our passion, and we just believe that we can pour into them and just help them, guide them through life.” She added, “We made that decision early on that when we were going to foster children, we wouldn’t say ‘no,’ because we know the children are in crisis and they need a home. They need stability. They need love. So we opened our doors to the kids, and we’ve had over 100 children walk through our door.”
Lauren is an early childhood education specialist and a former teacher. Tony is an NBC football analyst and retired coach who formerly led the Indianapolis Colts and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Both are Christian. They recently released a book they co-authored, Uncommon Influence: Saying Yes to a Purposeful Life. Tony Dungy said their goal with the book is to “encourage people to let God lead.”
In their book, the Dungys speak about how some foster children come in and out of their lives for years. Most of the time, they’ll get calls about children who need a home in the middle of the night. Whenever they got the call, the Dungys would answer.
“Faith is at the heart of their daily lives”, Lauren said, adding, “It’s definitely the driving force in our life. We begin each day in prayer together, talking to the Lord, and that just really jumpstarts our day.”