A trying few months for Bills Hall-of-Fame quarterback Jim Kelly in his second battle with cancer will not prevent him from fully attending his football camp and one-day clinic, according to buffalobills.com correspondent Anna Stolzenburg:
As Jim Kelly continues down the road to recovery, he said today on a Rochester radio station that he’ll be able to make it in person to all five days of his Jim Kelly Football Camp.
“I was nervous I wasn’t going to make it, but I’m feeling better and will be there every day,” Kelly said.
His annual camp, which starts Wednesday, July 9 and runs through Sunday, July 13, will be hosted this year at Sweet Home High School in Amherst, NY accompanied by a separate one-day clinic on July 15 at St. John Fisher College in Pittsford, NY. Kelly says he’s excited to be able to make it to both. There’s still time to sign your child up to attend both the five-day camp and the one-day clinic, and walk-up registrations are also accepted.
Stolzenberg wrote that Kelly receives his nourishment through a feeding tube, but was still able to try a Buffalo staple, the chicken wing. Kelly said to Stolzenberg that it was too hot for his taste buds recovering from a second occurrence of upper jaw cancer, but is going toward regular food.
Kelly has lost 51 pounds since the recurrence of cancer, and is currently dealing with rebounding taste buds and needing to drink a certain amount of water. But Kelly told Stolzenberg he has seen that his story has been one of inspiration for others in similar situations:
It’s not only the physical toughness but the mental toughness,” he said on how he’s navigated these past few months. “I didn’t want to make this a big deal because so many other people are going through the same thing but I’ve had so many people reach out and say ‘If Jim Kelly can get through this, so can I.”
Knowing how much his family and friends have supported him through his fight, Kelly said he made a practice of giving his balloons and flowers to others on his hospital floor to make sure they know they’re supported too.
Kelly could also be involved in the future of the Bills franchise. According to the Buffalo News’ Tim Graham, a new potential player in the Bills ownership competition has emerged and let Kelly know of his intentions:
Three years ago, prominent bond investor Jeffrey Gundlach expressed interest in purchasing the Buffalo Bills to ensure they remain in Western New York.
But then the Amherst High grad went through an ugly courtroom divorce with his previous employer and testified he was worth $90 million, not nearly enough to pursue an NFL franchise.
Hold on, though.
Gundlach is worth way more than that today, and two sources tell The Buffalo News he still wants to buy the Bills.
One source familiar with the sales process and another in the banking industry say Gundlach not only is exploring a purchase, but also has approached Bills legend Jim Kelly about forming a group.
Gundlach is chief executive officer and chief investment officer of DoubleLine Capital, a Los Angeles-based investment firm that manages $50 billion in assets. Gundlach is DoubleLine’s largest shareholder.
A DoubleLine spokesman this afternoon declined to comment on Gundlach’s interest in the Bills.
Gundlach joins prospective buyers like Tom Golisano, Donald Trump, Terry Pegula, and Jon Bon Jovi. While Gundlach does business in Los Angeles, Graham notes that Gundlach told the Wall Street Journal in 2011 that he wants the Bills franchise to remain in Buffalo, calling it a “tragedy” if the team moved to L.A. or “some random city”.
Gundlach is considered a great investor, and his net worth is close to $1 million at this point. How much Gundlach is willing to put up to purchase the team, and to what extent he involves Kelly and other group members adds more intrigue to an already very interesting ownership battle.
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