ESPN's Dave Pasch Offers to Help Phoenix Families with Lost Income from COVID-19

Families in the Phoenix area impacted by the outbreak of COVID-19 have been offered assistance by ESPN play-by-play announcer Dave Pasch.

The 47-year-old, who calls games for the Arizona Cardinals as well as the NBA for ESPN, reached out via Twitter to offer to pay bills for a family in need, per Jeff Metcalfe of the Arizona Republic.

In a tweet posted Saturday, Pasch pledged his willingness to help:

Pasch has since expanded on his motivations for lending support, per Metcalfe: "I just felt this is an opportunity for me as a Christian to live out my faith in a way that's real and kind of where the rubber meets the road. Here's an opportunity to step up when you've got a lot of people that are hurting and suffering and unsure of the future, scared, nervous, anxious."

A four-time Arizona Sportscaster of the Year, Pasch decided to make a public declaration of his offer to help after consultation with his wife Hallie, according to Metcalfe. The hope of both is to encourage more people to offer assistance.

Pasch confirmed that hope has become a reality, with others sharing offers to provide aid with the broadcaster. He also noted how the church he attends is focused on paying bills for those most impacted by the disease and the measures being taken to halt its spread.

He's been encouraged by seeing others from across the sporting world provide support, and Pasch believes "it's a time where people that can lend a hand financially really should." Pasch, who also calls football and both men's and women's basketball at the collegiate level, has asked those within sports to set the right example.

There are similar instances in other sports, with Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank pledging to continue paying employees dependant on an hourly wage, per The Athletic's Jason Butt.

With sporting events around the globe either canceled or suspended, those involved have the opportunity to help respond to what the World Health Organisation has declared a pandemic.

There have been more than 152,400 cases of coronavirus diagnosed across 144 countries since the outbreak began, per data provided by the WHO (h/t CNN).