Tom Brady took on a side gig during what turned out to be his final NFL season.
After Brady announced his retirement from the NFL on Wednesday, it was revealed that he has been volunteering at an animal shelter with his children this season.
Ashley Bragg Ryan, wife of Brady's Tampa Bay Buccaneers teammate Logan Ryan, shared an Instagram post that included a picture of Brady, along with his son, Benjamin, 13, and daughter, Vivian, 10, holding puppies along with Ashley, Logan and their daughter.
Ryan praised Brady's efforts in the caption:
"I guess I'll chime in with my Tom Brady story.. but it's not the one about 7 Super Bowls or being down 28-3 or his last pass as a Patriot. We all know those. It's the one about the dad who volunteered at the animal shelter with his kids throughout an entire football season. The one where he bonded with his kids over naming puppies and bottle feeding kittens. The one where he silently showed up every other week to make a difference for his family and his community. The one where 2 dads just got to be dads and beamed with pride every time their kids said 'Please can we just stay a little bit longer?!' The one where two little girls built a friendship around their love of tiny baby kittens and did their part in making the world a better place for animals."
The Instagram post also featured a video of Brady and Logan petting the puppies inside a kennel. Ashley stated that the images were taken at the Humane Society of Tampa Bay prior to the start of the 2022 season:
"These pictures were from August and we didn't take many more after that. Not publicly at least. It wasn't about publicity, fundraising or recognition. It was about being a human being. It was about Tom taking the very thing his little girl loves the most and turning it into an opportunity to spend time together. It was about Tom reaching out to his friend, asking how to get involved, helping his community by giving something far more meaningful than money.. his time."
The 45-year-old will now have more time to do whatever he pleases as he embarks on this next chapter in his life.
