An All-Time Win in Uncertain Times Thanks to the Toronto Browns Backers
On Friday, December 18, 2020, lifelong Cleveland Browns fan Jordan Lazaruk watched his apartment go up in flames. Hapless and helpless, in a matter of minutes everything he owned was reduced to a heap of ash and dust.
Browns fans are accustomed to losing. Their home stadium on the shores of Lake Erie is deemed “The Factory of Sadness,” they have two winning seasons in the last 20 years, and they are renowned for having ended the careers of dozens of quarterbacks since rejoining the National Football League in 1999.
But something about this year has been different; amidst the persistent negativity and pervading cowl of doubt there has been a unifying steadiness, a calm synergy that has the Browns competing in the playoffs for the first time in 18 years. And Jordan’s story of heartbreaking loss seems to have been caught up in this new wave of overcoming odds and communal success.
Scrambling to get back onto his feet with neither his insurance nor his landlord offering any assistance, Jordan reached out to Toronto Browns Backers, and President and Founder, Bryan Loberg.
The Toronto organization is the largest Browns fan club outside of Cleveland, Ohio, and has built a reputation for being a tight-knit group that takes care of its congregation, so when Bryan and VP Matt Weeks heard about the misfortune that befell one of their members, they were quick to action.
“I work in local news and hear about tragedies all the time,” says Matt, “but when it happens to somebody I know it always shakes me. When I heard about what happened to Jordy my heart sank.”
Bryan & Matt reached out to their membership for donations, and have since joined forces with two unlikely allies — Mr. World Canada Alessandro Coward, and Miss Earth Canada Mattea Henderson — to support a GoFundMe for Jordan (found here), which has, to date, raised over $2,500 toward getting Jordan into a new apartment and back on track.
“I’ve known Jordan for several years, and his involvement in charitable work across Canada,” says Alessandro, “he is always there with a kind heart and a warm smile, the first person to step up and help someone in their time of need, so when he fell victim to these catastrophic circumstances, Mattea and I didn’t hesitate to do whatever we could.”
The pair of illustrious models and activists have been astounded at the outpouring of support from the Toronto Browns Backers. “I’m deeply compelled by the vitality and strength of the Browns Backers community. It’s more than a fan club, it’s a family, and the way they’ve come together is amazing to Alessandro and I,” said Mattea.
Adding to the list of luminaries reaching out to support the cause, Canadian Music Legend David Stone, former member of rock supergroups Rainbow & Max Webster, has joined the roster of those who believe in helping those who are willing to help everyone else around them.
Jordan has been flabbergasted by the assistance he has received. “It has been incredible,” he said. “Like a young Marc Sessler, stunned at receiving those infamous letters from then-Browns Head Coach Bill Belichik, I have been shocked at the generous show of support from the Toronto Browns Backers organization, and the prodigious pair of extraordinary individuals, Mr. and Miss Canada.”
Toronto Browns Backers VP Weeks was not at all surprised at how quickly and passionately their membership responded to the call for help; the club has been active in supporting their local community for over a decade.
“The Toronto Browns Backers club may have been brought together by our common love of the Cleveland Browns, but it is what we can accomplish as a collective that has always been our strength,” says Weeks. “Every year we donate boxes of toys to The Toronto Fire Fighters’ Annual Christmas Toy Drive, we donate pounds of food to The Daily Bread Food Bank for their Thanksgiving Food Drive, and we have even created our own charity, The Lennie Fund, in memory of one of our members who passed away from a heart condition merely months after getting married, with all proceeds raised going directly to The Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada. All that being said, if there is ever a time where somebody in our club is in need, we do not hesitate to do whatever we can to help out. We are one big family, and family sticks together.”
Whatever happens this week, when the Browns face off against their longtime rivals the Pittsburgh Steelers, at least one Browns fan has come out of 2020 with an all-time win.
To support this project, or for more information, visit the GoFundMe for Jordan at https://www.gofundme.com/f/jordys-apartment-burnt-down.