Ryan Grant Is (Prom) King

It’s not every day that a 28-year-old is named honorary prom king. But when you foot the bill for the event as well as create a scholarship at the school, you get special treatment. Being a member of the Green Bay Packers doesn’t hurt either.

On Friday night, Ryan Grant and his girlfriend Lita Lewis attended the junior prom of Burlington Catholic Central High School at Hawk’s View Country Club in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. But Grant wasn’t there to relive his high school days; he was there to ensure Ryan Luxem’s memory lived on.

Grant first met Ryan Luxem last November when he spent time with him at the boy’s home in Milwaukee. By the time the two had met, the 11-year-old was already in the advanced stages of Leukemia and would succumb to the disease within a month. The hours that Grant and Luxem spent together left a lasting impression on the Packers running back and led to Grant attending prom at the school where Ryan Luxem’s mother is a teacher.

Wanting to do something to keep Luxem’s memory alive, Grant struck a deal with the high schoolers at Burlington Catholic Central High School. If they would raise money for a scholarship in Ryan Luxem’s name and volunteer at the Ryan4Ryan Celebration this summer, Grant would pay for and attend their prom.

As of this weekend, the students had raised almost $6,000, so Grant made good on his promise and went to prom.

And if the prom wasn’t enough, Grant will also host the Ryan4Ryan celebration event in July to raise additional funds for the scholarship.

So while the rest of us went about our daily business this weekend, Ryan Grant helped a little boy’s memory live a little longer. In exchange, the students of Burlington Catholic Central High School made him king.