Aaron Taylor ’94 had a phenomenal career as an offensive guard at Notre Dame, earning consensus All-American honors in 1992 and 1993, and winning the Lombardi Award in 1993 as the nation’s outstanding lineman. He co-captained the ’93 Irish to a record of 11-1-0. His six-year NFL career include a Super Bowl championship with the 1996 Green Bay Packers.

Now a college football analyst for the CBS Sports Network, Aaron is heavily involved in a wide variety of charity work. He started the Aaron Taylor Impact Fund, a donor-advised endowment whose mission is to bridge the gap between those who have and those who need.

“My charitable efforts are all over the spectrum,” says Aaron, who once spent 10 weeks helping survivors of an Indian Ocean earthquake. “They have one thing in common: They tug at my heartstrings. Each endeavor becomes more profound and more inclusive than the one before.”

“I used to think grandiose thoughts about changing the world—like I needed to be Martin Luther King, Gandhi, JFK or Rosa Parks. But as I am rounding second base, I am realizing that the best way to change the world is on a much smaller and consistent scale. By the way I treat my wife, or the employee behind the cash register, in front of my two sons. By the way I show up to those around me on a daily basis. Is the world—or are the people— better off because we have crossed paths? I want the answer to be yes.”