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UFC Athletes Visit Primary Children’s Hospital In Salt Lake City
Brandon Moreno, Justin Gaethje, Jalin Turner, And Brendan Allen Visited Primary Children's Hospital In Salt Lake City.
On Thursday, August 18, UFC athletes Brandon Moreno, Justin Gaethje, Jalin Turner and Brendan Allen visited Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah, as part of UFC 278 fight week..
Primary Children’s Hospital is a non-profit, free-standing children’s hospital which provides quality healthcare for children with complex illnesses and injuries across the United States.
During the visit, the four fighters introduced themselves to the children through a virtual Q&A session, giving a background of who they are, what inspires them and what their career as a fighter is like. Afterwards, children were invited to the meet Moreno, Gaethje, Turner and Allen at the Forever Young Zone to play games, make slime, and pick-up some UFC toys.
Two of the available toys happened to be large, big shots pillows plush dolls of Moreno and Gaethje, who happily signed them and gave them to children.
“It’s our job to be inspirational,” Gaethje told UFC.com. “This is one of the main reasons I do this. We can touch people’s lives and these children are way more of fighters than we will ever be.”
The Utah Jazz mascot, Jazz Bear and Jazz dancers also joined the fighters on behalf of the Utah Jazz Foundation.
The two-hour plus play session was filled with plenty of laughs, fist bumps, photos and smiles that had the room buzzing with energy.
“This is the first time that UFC has come to the hospital, and we are so thankful for the support,” Holly Moss-Rosen, a Child Life Specialist from Primary Children’s Hospital told UFC.com. “We had a great time with the athletes visiting the kids and their families. It makes a hard situation feel a little easier.”
Primary Children’s Hospital was founded in 1922 and is nationally ranked as one of the best children’s hospitals in the United States. Primary Children’s Hospitals’ dedication to The Child First and Always has helped provide patients and families with therapeutic activities, positive distractions, and social support.
For Moreno, a father of three girls, the visit gave him just as much joy as it did the children.
“I have three daughters and I want to bring them happiness and make sure that they smile and are taken care of,” Moreno told UFC.com. “I can tell with these facilities that these kids are getting the best care and I enjoyed every minute that I was with them, and I hope they did too.”
To learn more about Primary Children’s Hospital and its services, please visit https://intermountainhealthcare.org/primary-childrens.
UFC is also proud to collaborate with 5ForTheFight.org as they serve as our charitable partner for UFC 278: USMAN vs. EDWARDS 2.
5 For The Fight invites everyone to give $5 for the fight against cancer. Text future to 50555 and confirm your $5 donation to cancer research. To find out more go to 5ForTheFight.org.
