Fans Vandalize McKelvin's Home

Next time you write a check, I suggest you speak first to Tim Petrella.

I didn't know who he was, either, until Buffalo's Leodis McKelvin stepped forward Monday night and covered himself in mud. McKelvin is the guy who fumbled away a Bills victory, whose home was vandalized by a couple of dimwitted teens and who responded by taking the high road, refusing to press charges against the morons.


Leodis McKelvin tries to get his focus on preparing for the Buccaneers. (AP)
Now, cue Tim Petrella.

Tim is a long-time and long-suffering Bills fan who, frankly, was appalled by what happened to McKelvin. He didn't like the last-minute loss anymore than those teenagers -- calling it "crushing" -- but he was positively mortified by their response and the message it sent the rest of the country about Bills fans. So he decided to do something about it, and that's where you can reach for your checkbook.

With the help of BuffaloRumblings.com, he asked for donations to McKelvin's Kids Escaping Drugs program -- a group that helps Buffalo-area youths battle drug and alcohol problems. When he came up with the idea, Petrella was hoping to gain $200 in donations. As of mid-Friday, he had close to $1,500 -- with $2,500 the goal.

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"For a lot of the fans," said Petrella, "I think what happened [to McKelvin's property] was more disturbing than the actual fumble itself. Bills fans are a passionate bunch, but we also pride ourselves for being supportive of our team and being the kind of fans that make players want to play in Buffalo. So I wanted to come up with an idea that made a positive out of a negative situation."

I would say he aced the final.

Petrella's drive got the attention of the Bills' website and its writer, Chris Brown. It got the attention of Buffalo rookie Aaron Maybin, too, with the Bills' first-round pick promoting it with a message on Twitter. Mostly, it has the attention of Bills fans everywhere, including one guy who donated $50 "in honor of Leodis McKelvin" and another who kicked in $51, saying, "Thanks for making the community and this team awesome." The most intriguing donation, however, was an anonymous $10 gift from ... get this ... a New England Patriots fan who conceded, "I'm very impressed with all of you."

Make that two of us. I'm impressed that someone -- OK, Tim Petrella -- had the compassion to produce the idea and float it out there, but I'm even more impressed with the response to his plea. Buffalo is a town that is, as Petrella acknowledged, "passionate" about its football team, but it's one thing to be passionate; it's another to be overzealous, stupid and downright destructive.

The Bills lost a game they should have won, but, hey, it happens. Tell people in Cincinnati their team wasn't robbed last weekend. But Bengals fans didn't react; Bills fans did, and I'm not talking about the knuckleheads who vandalized McKelvin's property. I'm talking about Tim Petrella and the people -- "the real Bills fans," as he called them -- who responded to his challenge and donated money to a worthwhile cause.

Leodis McKelvin made a mistake, and he suffered for it in the court of public opinion. But that is where the reaction should have stopped. Unfortunately for all of us it did not. Pass the checkbook, please. I know where my next donation is going.