Facility renamed Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning sits with 14-year-old Sydney Taylor of Brownsburg. Sydney introduced the Colts quarterback at a Sept. 5 press conference where it was announced that St. Vincent Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis would be renamed Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital at St. Vincent.

By John Shaughnessy

If you ask “the country’s greatest football fan” why she cheers so intensely for Peyton Manning, she doesn’t mention his record-breaking ability as the quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts or his leadership in helping the team win the Super Bowl in 2007.

Instead, you get a story about pumpkins from Daughter of Charity Mary John Tintea, the 76-year-old chaplain at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis who was named the nation’s greatest football fan by ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

While mentioning the pumpkins, Sister Mary John tells how Manning quietly makes private visits on a regular basis to the hospital, where he spends time with children and their families.

“On Halloween, he brought the pumpkins and helped the kids decorate them,” she recalled. “He sits down with the kids. He talks with them. You’d think they were his children. You can see it’s coming from his heart. It’s all love. I root for him as a human being and a special person, not just as a player.”

Sister Mary John offered her insights on Sept. 5, just minutes after it was announced that St. Vincent Children’s Hospital would be renamed Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital at St. Vincent.

The name change reflects the close relationship that has developed between Manning and the hospital since 1998, the year he was drafted by the Colts. Hospital officials hope the new name will raise additional awareness and money for the children’s hospital, which opened in 2003.

Manning hopes that his association with the hospital will further help its continuing mission “on the behalf of critically ill and injured children”—to help “heal a frightened child.”

“In the NFL, the name on the back of the jersey is emblematic of a player’s commitment to contribute any way he can to the success of that team,” Manning said. “For me, having the name on the front of this building carries with it much the same: a weighty responsibility to contribute to the many victories ahead at St. Vincent’s.”

Daughter of Charity Mary John Tintea, center, poses with Peyton Manning’s parents, Olivia and Archie, at a Sept. 5 press conference announcing the renaming of St. Vincent Children’s Hospital for the Indianapolis Colts’ quarterback.

Manning shared his words with an overflowing crowd in the atrium of the children’s hospital, a crowd marked by children wearing blue Colts’ jerseys bearing his name and his number, 18.

What wasn’t shared was the amount of the monetary donation that Manning and his wife, Ashley, made to the children’s hospital. The couple asked that the amount of their donation be kept private, hospital officials said. The request seemed to match the humble, gracious demeanor that the 31-year-old Manning displayed during the announcement.

“For nearly 10 years, I’ve been honored to know some of the patients and families who have been treated at St. Vincent,” he said. “I have seen firsthand the quality of care and compassion the talented hospital staff deliver to pediatric patients across Indiana.”

One of those patients—14-year-old Sydney Taylor of Brownsburg—introduced Manning to the crowd. Diagnosed with cancer, she said her health has been improving since coming to St. Vincent in January.

“I thought it was really cool,” she said about meeting Manning.

Manning attended the announcement with his wife, Ashley, and his parents, Archie and Olivia.

Archie noted that he was proud of Peyton for many reasons, “but today I feel like we’re witnessing Peyton’s greatest moment as he reinforces his commitment to help all the children in this state.”

That commitment reflects Peyton’s faith, his father said.

“This is a labor of love for him,” Archie said. “One of the things that Olivia and I stressed to our children was priorities. When you line up your priorities, faith has to be first.”

Manning backs his faith with his actions, according to Sister Mary John.

“It’s so wonderful for Peyton to take this upon himself,” she said. “His concern is complete. It’s not just for show. It’s from the heart.” †