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Bucs' Dunn Brings 3 Homes in 3 1/2 Hours

Tribune photo by JAY NOLAN

Warrick Dunn greets Joilee Hazley outside of her new home in Tampa. The family received the home through The Warrick Dunn Foundation which provided the down payment and all its contents.

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By ANWAR RICHARDSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 7, 2008

Bucs running back Warrick Dunn returned to Tampa Bay two months ago and carried his well-known heart with him.

Dunn did not waste anytime reviving his passion of making homeownership for single parents in this area possible. Through the Warrick Dunn Foundation's "Home for the Holidays" program, three families received down-payment assistance on Tuesday within the span of 31/2 hours. To date, Dunn has assisted 77 single parents, along with 201 children and dependents, move into a home.

Aaron's Sales & Lease Ownership fully provided all the home furnishing for each home, while Prudential Tropical Realty has given more than $300,000 in financial support.

"If anyone really knows me, and knows about my life, my mom was my best friend," said Dunn, who gives away homes to honor Betty Smothers, his mother and former police officer who was killed in 1993. "She meant everything to me in this world. To be able to live out her legacy, I'm just really honored."

Here are the early Mother's Day gifts Dunn provided for three Bay area families:

9 a.m.

DADE CITY - Sitting comfortably on a brown leather sofa, Dunn froze. The NFL veteran, sharing the sectional with Christine Bonilla and her family, searched for two words but was at a loss.

"Y'all better be a Bucs fan and a Warrick Dunn fan," he told the family, which moments ago was given a new home. "My number is ..."

After a laugh, someone asked if his football number remained the same. Dunn explained it had, "but I hadn't spoken Spanish in a while; 28."

Immediately an answer came: "Veinte ocho."

Dunn, a Florida State alum, then ribbed Bonilla's mother, Lupe Rodela, who was wearing a pink University of Florida shirt: "Now you can go out and buy my jersey, take that Florida T-shirt off."

Bonilla, 38, and her children, Julio Arcadio, 20, Angela Arcadio, 18, Cassandra Bonilla, 15, Celena Bonilla, 12 and Cirino Bonilla, 10, were awarded a fully furnished and stocked home via the Warrick Dunn Foundation and the East Pasco Habitat for Humanity on Tuesday.

Before entering the home, Dunn held house keys attached to a Buccaneers key chain in his left hand. Once he told Christine Bonilla to come get her keys, her tears began to flow.

"You know how people say, 'She deserves it?' I really do think my mom deserves it because we've been through a lot," Angela Arcadio said. "We've been from this house to this house, we stayed with family members. We never had our own room. ... I am super, super excited that my mom got this."

When the family first pulled up, about a block away from the house, Julio Arcadio noticed a man standing nearby. Once he stepped from the vehicle: "I recognized him from TV and I said, 'That's somebody famous.' And then he was like, 'I'm Warrick Dunn.' Oh my God. Then I shook his hand and I froze. That's Warrick Dunn."

- Eddie Daniels

11 a.m.

YBOR CITY - Natasha Roberts got out of the passenger seat of an SUV on Tuesday morning and was greeted by one of the best running backs in Bucs history.

It would have been an honor for most, but Roberts was unsure who the stranger was, or why he was at her soon-to-be home.

"I didn't know who he was," Roberts said. "I don't watch football. I really don't like sports."

After Roberts' experience Tuesday, she now has a favorite player - and for good reason.

Dunn helped Roberts achieve her dream of home ownership after supplying the 27-year-old with down payment assistance for a three-bedroom, two-bath home in Ybor City. Roberts and son Donte Moore, 9, and daughter Tashell Moore, 8, were left speechless by Dunn's kindness.

"When I came here today, I didn't expect to see anything except this house," Roberts said. "I didn't know what to expect. I remember seeing the model home and hoping maybe it would look like that. I don't have to go shopping for anything. Everything is already here. All I have to do is bring my pictures, my clothes and I'm home."

Before Roberts received the keys to her home, Pastor Earnest Coney of Spirit of Truth Ministries blessed the house and Dunn led them on a tour. She fought back tears the entire morning, and when not crying, Roberts smiled and continuously thanked Dunn.

Roberts may have never heard of Dunn before Tuesday, but she will never forget his heart.

"It doesn't matter if she knows me or doesn't," Dunn said. "I know she worked to a point in her life to get to where she's at. To be able to help her out, to me, that's satisfying."

- Anwar S. Richardson

12:30 p.m.

TAMPA - Dunn had driven around Tampa Bay for three hours, and despite scorching heat, he still was enthusiastic about his final surprise.

"Each time it's something exciting," Dunn said. "I wish we could have done more than three."

Joilee Hazley was the last to receive down-payment assistance and a fully furnished home from Dunn. Her enthusiasm and energy were enough to power Hazley's new neighborhood.

Hazley, a single mother to Nick, 12, and Caleb, 14, was not at a loss of words when it came to showing her appreciation for Dunn's surprise visit.

"You are a great football player. Don't get me wrong, you are a wonderful football player," Hazley said to Dunn as he sat on her new living room couch. "I love watching you run, but the things you do off the field, those are eternal."

Hazley works at Busch Gardens in the Zoo Education Department. She has been employed there for more than 30 years.

On Monday night, Hazley found herself praying for help and guidance, especially with her ensuing home purchase.

The following day, Dunn was the answer to her prayers.

"I don't know if I will be able to fully say what is in my heart, but I am very grateful, thankful and humble," Hazley said. "I'm so grateful my boys can see that there are people that come into your life and help you. It's a good lesson."

- Anwar S. Richardson

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