Watch as Panthers' Cam Newton surprises Special Olympics athletes with shopping spree

Their eyes were all fixed on the rows of bikes and T-shirts as the quarterback sneaked in behind them.

It was a rainy Monday evening at the Dick's Sporting Goods near SouthPark Mall, and some 20 Special Olympics athletes were situated in a semicircle of camping chairs. Earlier that day, the elementary and middle school students had held their own opening ceremony for the Mecklenburg County Spring Games, and this was a continuation of the festivities — or so they thought.

To draw the children's attention, former store employee and U.S. Olympic bobsled alternate Briauna Jones spoke to the athletes about her own Olympic journey. But as Jones finished a round of questions, she was interrupted by a tall, black-clad figure who instantly drew the athletes' attention: Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton.

And as if Newton's surprise arrival weren't enough of a gift, the quarterback also announced that each child would receive a gift card to the store worth $200.

Let the shopping madness begin.

"It just puts a lot of things into perspective," Newton said of spending time with the Special Olympics athletes. "I heard the only disability in life is having a bad attitude, and you see a lot of smiles on these children's faces, and that's contagious.

"Above all, just to see them interact with each other and interact with myself, and to see the faces when they see me, that's something that I always will cherish and that's what I most look forward to."

It's true. You should have seen the toothy grins as Newton meandered through the shop, always with a gaggle of boys and girls following him (and their parents, too). He cracked jokes with them as he dribbled a basketball down the aisles and stopped for pictures with seemingly every bounce.

It was another example of Newton giving back to the community, something he said has been a priority for him since being drafted No. 1 overall by the Panthers in 2011.

"It's a chance for me to be (seen), be touched, be available to these kids and have the opportunity to give them hope and interact with them," Newton said. "We just look forward to, as a whole organization, putting these events on."

Newton's charitable efforts throughout the Charlotte community have been well-documented over the years, from his annual Thanksgiving feasts to Christmas-time gift-giving adventures.

Newton is coming off a season in which he led the Panthers to an 11-5 record and a wild card berth against the Saints, but Monday night — even surrounded by footballs and replicas of his jersey — wasn't about Newton or the Panthers at all.

It was instead about these Special Olympics athletes and providing 10- to 13-year-old children the support and inspiration needed to compete at the highest level in their own competitions this week.

"It gives me the opportunity to give back to the community that I'm in and see certain things happen and flourish," Newton said. "We just hope the seeds that we plant today we can see later on down the road."

Toward the end of the event, Newton stumbled upon a particular set of black and yellow clothes. He stared at them for a second, pondering through his thick-rimmed glasses, before taking shirts off the shelf to hand to children.

What the shirts said on them?

Chase Greatness, in capital letters across the front.

And you better believe both Newton and the athletes surrounding him were smiling when they found those.

This story was originally published April 24, 2018 at 7:22 AM with the headline "Watch as Panthers' Cam Newton surprises Special Olympics athletes with shopping spree."