The grand marshal for Peachtree City’s Fourth of July parade this year will be a familiar face to many UGA football fans.
Matt Stinchcomb, who went on to a successful NFL career as an offensive lineman, is now involved in the business world, enjoying three children and so much of what Peachtree City has to offer.
He is also heavily involved in a charitable effort called “Countdown to Kickoff” that raises money for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and the Georgia Transplant Foundation in a cooperative effort with UGA. The Countdown to Kickoff events include a dinner/silent auction, a celebrity golf tournament and a fan festival for UGA football fans, the latter slated for Saturday, July 16 at the UGA practice fields; tickets are still available at www.ugakickoff.com.
All of the events involve former Bulldogs, a number of whom rose to the NFL ranks like Stinchcomb.
“It’s a lot of fun, especially for Georgia folks,” Stinchcomb said.
Stinchcomb is passionate about Countdown to Kickoff, which specifically benefits the “Second Chance” program at Children’s Healthcare for organ transplant recipients in addition to a special clinic at UGA that partners students who aspire to be special education teachers and occupational therapists with youths who face physical or cognitive disabilities.
Stinchcomb speaks with compassion about the young lives which are on hold awaiting transplants.
“You’ve got kids four years old, eight years old, four months old,” Stinchcomb said “They’ve sought all treatment and now they’re chained to a dialysis machine.”
Stinchcomb’s soft spot for those facing medical issues also stems from a cousin who is wheelchair bound and suffering from a rare genetic disorder affecting the nervous system.
The subject matter of organ transplants also hits home for Stinchcomb and his brother Jon — who also backs the foundation’s efforts — as their father has been awaiting a heart transplant for a while. In the meantime, he has a special device implanted that pumps his blood, Stinchcomb said.
“He’s either plugged into the wall or has batteries on him all the time,” Stinchcomb said. “It’s like science fiction almost…”
Stinchcomb almost feels just as surreal about being selected as the grand marshal for the parade. In fact, he didn’t believe the news at first.
“The truth is, I was really excited. My kids love that parade, and we schedule our summer around it if possible,” Stinchcomb said.
That means Janie, 6, Addie, 4 and Whitt, 1, all will be riding along with him in the parade, waving and throwing candy, he said. Instead of witnessing the spectacle that is the parade, they’ll be a part of it, riding alongside their father.
As a parent, Stinchcomb appreciates Peachtree City in many ways, from the golf cart paths to the character and charm it offers in much the way of a small town environment.
“We had lived here for two years without a golf cart and I have no idea how we did it,” Stinchcomb said. “When we got one, it was like a whole other city unfolded.”
And having grown up in Gwinnett County, Stinchcomb can appreciate another of Peachtree City’s hallmarks.
“I love the fact we don’t have traffic, although the 54/74 area could be improved,” he said.
Though he’s retired from football, Stinchcomb still has some skin in the game, doing broadcast coverage for outlets including ESPN. Covering football is a lot easier than playing the game, he said.
“You’re not as sore talking about it as you are actually doing it,” Stinchcomb said. “But in ways it is similar, and it is easier to talk about after it has happened, as opposed to actually making the decision as it’s happening.”
Stinchcomb is also involved in an insurance brokerage venture with fellow Bulldog alum David Greene, who also is a part of Countdown to Kickoff.
Both Matt and his brother Jon spent a good bit of time in the south Fairburn and Fayetteville areas visiting family in their youth. And that’s how Matt Stinchcomb’s family ended up coming back to Fayette County, settling in Peachtree City.
He speaks proudly of the fact that the home his grandfather built in Fayetteville is still up and standing.
And one might imagine Stinchcomb’s grandpa would be terribly proud of his grandson’s charitable heart and sense of humor.
In fact, the Countdown to Kickoff charity isn’t the only one close to Stinchcomb’s heart. He also plans to attend a fund-raiser Thursday, June 23 at the Gordon Biersch restaurant in Buckhead that benefits the Hudson Family Foundation, which also is geared up to assist children in need.
