“If we could learn from history,” wrote famed English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, “what lessons it could teach us!”

One of the most important life lessons is the importance of Giving Back a blessing received. Many Civilizations have toppled because the individuals and their government took but did not give back.

Kerry Shook, a minister in Woodland Texas said during his “Live Boldly” lessons, “There are two types of people in the world: givers, and takers. No one ever remembers what they take out of life; we’re only remembered for what we give back in life.”

DKR was a giver who understood that “What I gave I kept and what I kept I lost” . He received the Horatio Alger award in 1996, and the Harvey Penick Award in 1999.

DKR attended and endorsed a whose who of other charities causes and personally started one called the Ben, Willie, and Darrell Golf Classic Tournament that helped inhabitants of East Austin. Royal insisted that the proceeds distributed to the East Austin community should not be drained off with administrative costs. The Austin Community Foundation complied with DKR’s wishes. TLSN is also following the same script as the Austin Community Foundation. No TLSN Board member is paid for administrative expenses.

In 2015, 3 Longhorn T-ring recipients from the 1960s began the long and winding road to forming a 501 (c) (3) Longhorn sports educational site with a compassionate component. The journey started in the offices of Longhorn A.D. Patterson, Perrin, and now CDC. Patterson rejected the TLSN mission, Mike Perrin blessed it, and CDC set the limits. This winding road led to a new path blessed by the NCAA and the UT legal and compliance departments.

As an educational website, TLSN has chronicled a detailed history of all Longhorn Sports from inception through 2015. The website offers powerful and discerning Longhorn comments captured from Longhorn authors, media brochures, newspaper articles, shelter magazines, videos, and, most importantly, Longhorn athletes who have helped create the Longhorn brand. TLSN’s historical site is free to all who wish to visit.

TLSN is a tax-exempt that “is leaving something behind.” Just like- Longhorn athletes Brian Robison, Tommy Nobis (deceased), Cole Pittman (deceased), Johnnie Johnson, Tina Bonci (deceased), Sam and Emmanuel Acho, Charlie Cravens, and Michelle Williams Adamolekun- have done.  

Just click on https://www.texaslsn.org/giving-back-taxexempt-organizations-setup-by-former-longhorn-student-athletes who know the meaning of what I gave I kept.  

Texas Legacy Support Network is a historical site that is free, educational, and Insightful. TLSN has built a bridge to the past to remind all Longhorns that sports heritage shapes the present and inspires the future. Everyone involved with the U.T. Athletic department through the last 120 plus years is instrumental in making the Longhorn brand the most recognized name in NCAA sports history. No one involved should be forgotten or left behind. Horns that were part of the U.T. Athletic Department deserve an equity stake in our great university and should have a safety net available. 

In 2015 three Longhorn lettermen -Benny Pace, Jim Kay, and Billy Dale- joined forces to create a tax-exempt charitable foundation to enable TLSN to raise funds from tax-deductible contributions. The funds raised provide financial assistance to ALL former qualifying student-athletes, trainers, managers, coaches, and their immediate families. 

TLSN received notice of its tax-exempt 501 (c) (3) status on September 12, 2017.

 Jackie Campbell, a Longhorn volleyball player from the ’80s, was the first qualifying person to receive assistance from TLSN. Her son, Yanaq, was diagnosed with Leukemia in 2017. Jackie needed temporary financial help, so she reached out to U.T.’s Longhorn Foundation for support. Jill Sterkel notified TLSN of her situation, and TLSN offered her a financial safety net. From January 2018 thru February 2020, TLSN sent Jackie a grant of approximately $25,000. The grant helped Jackie defray expenses for groceries, house payments, gas, utilities, and telephone. Her son is recovering and has been released from medical supervision. A message from Yanaq to all of us who helped his family pay for six months is below.

 TLSN wants to continue to fulfill Coach Royal’s message that hung in the locker room.  As the title to Sean Rowe’s song says, TLSN wants “to leave something behind.” In his song, Sean says, “I can get thru the wall if you give me a door So I can leave something behind.”

*The donate button below is only for tax-exempt donations to TLSN. An organization that helps qualifying former Longhorn student-athletes, former managers, trainers, and their immediate families.

If you want to send a check, please make out the check to “TLSN” and send it to 

TLSN -7703 Mesa Drive, Austin, TX, 78731