Ryan Grant Is (Prom) King

Ryan Grant attended and paid for prom to raise money for a scholarship in Ryan Luxem's name.

It's not every day that a 28-year-old is named honorary prom king. But when you foot the bill for the event as well as create a scholarship at the school, you get special treatment. Being a member of the Green Bay Packers doesn't hurt either.

On Friday night, Ryan Grant and his girlfriend Lita Lewis attended the junior prom of Burlington Catholic Central High School at Hawk's View Country Club in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. But Grant wasn't there to relive his high school days; he was there to ensure Ryan Luxem's memory lived on.

Grant first met Ryan Luxem last November when he spent time with him at the boy's home in Milwaukee. By the time the two had met, the 11-year-old was already in the advanced stages of Leukemia and would succumb to the disease within a month. The hours that Grant and Luxem spent together left a lasting impression on the Packers running back and led to Grant attending prom at the school where Ryan Luxem's mother is a teacher.

Wanting to do something to keep Luxem's memory alive, Grant struck a deal with the high schoolers at Burlington Catholic Central High School. If they would raise money for a scholarship in Ryan Luxem's name and volunteer at the Ryan4Ryan Celebration this summer, Grant would pay for and attend their prom.

As of this weekend, the students had raised almost $6,000, so Grant made good on his promise and went to prom.

And if the prom wasn't enough, Grant will also host the Ryan4Ryan celebration event in July to raise additional funds for the scholarship.

So while the rest of us went about our daily business this weekend, Ryan Grant helped a little boy's memory live a little longer. In exchange, the students of Burlington Catholic Central High School made him king.

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Comments (12)

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dgtalmn's picture

May 16, 2011 at 07:23 am

Love these stories! Wish there was more, which I believe is, but sometimes media (present company excluded) seem to highlight the negative.

Great Job Ryan!

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andrewgarda's picture

May 16, 2011 at 03:20 pm

Yeah these stories rarely got the press they deserve compared to whatever dumb thing Pacman is doing now.

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Anita's picture

May 16, 2011 at 08:58 am

One of my FB friends posted prom photos from Saturday on her FB. I grew up in Burlington (except I was a public school brat, so I didn't attend Catholic Central). The best photo was of Ryan's mock look of horror at the student who came to prom wearing a Chicago Bears tie under his tux.

Ryan and his date look smashing. He even bought her a wrist corsage, like a good prom escort. What a nice thing for Ryan to do! He is a true Packer (and a true Notre Dame man!)

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snackpack's picture

May 16, 2011 at 10:43 am

I grew up in Burlington too- BHS! People might also be interested to know that Burlington is the town where Tony Romo grew up and played high school football.

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PackersThad's picture

May 16, 2011 at 10:19 am

I hate to be that guy because what Ryan did for the kids and in Ryan's memory was A GREAT THING, but I really think that Ryan's date should've worn a more appropriate dress...#just saying

But once again, BRAVO FOR RYAN...My comment doesn't take away from Ryan's actions.

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June's picture

May 16, 2011 at 04:21 pm

I agree with the dress being a bit inappropriate.. It was definitely a great thing for Grant to do though and I'm sure the kids will be able to have memories for a lifetime because of it.

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aussiepacker's picture

May 17, 2011 at 01:46 am

i bet the teenage boys at the prom didn't mind the dress. lol

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Jim's picture

May 17, 2011 at 06:10 am

I bet the teenage boys were staring at their dates who had similar dresses...

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bomdad's picture

May 16, 2011 at 01:57 pm

The after party was sponsored by Mark Chmura.

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PackersRS's picture

May 16, 2011 at 02:23 pm

+1
in a very condemning way, but still.

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PackersRS's picture

May 16, 2011 at 02:50 pm

Oh, and on a non-related subject, 14 receivers ahead of Jennings on that NFL's top 100 of 2011?

No freaking way. I call shennanigans!

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Jim's picture

May 17, 2011 at 06:11 am

So did Jennings on his twitter

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