Bills' Damar Hamlin Launches Scholarship to Honor Cincinnati Staff Who Saved His Life

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is launching a scholarship program in Cincinnati to honor the personnel who treated him after he went into cardiac arrest in a January 2023 game against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The initiative will be run through Hamlin's Chasing M's Foundation.

"I'm humbled by the opportunity to set up a scholarship program to honor this team of professionals—my Cincinnati heroes—who helped save my life," he said. "Today, as I look at honoring these Cincinnati heroes and lifting up young people who are trying to find their way, I'm reminded of the enormous blessing I've been given through my charity and the generosity of people around the world."

The third-year defensive back is funding 10 $1,000 scholarships to be granted over the next three years. Each scholarship will bear the name of somebody who aided in his recovery.

Hamlin collapsed in the first quarter against Cincinnati after making a title. Bills assistant athletic trainer Denny Kellington was credited with helping to save the 25-year-old's life by quickly providing CPR on the field.

"I owe Denny my life," he said in an interview on Good Morning America. "Literally. He loves to say he was just doing his job, which is true, you know? And that night, he was literally the savior of my life."

Hamlin was subsequently transported to the the University of Cincinnati Medical Center and then to a hospital in Buffalo. Thanks to efforts of personnel at both facilities, he was discharged only nine days after his medical episode.

Doctors cleared Hamlin to resume all football-related activities in April, and he appeared in all three of Buffalo's preseason games. He made his 2023 season debut in the Bills' Week 4 victory over the Miami Dolphins.