BUFFALO, N.Y. — LeShawn Jerman's love of the Buffalo Bills goes way back to when he was a kid growing up on Long Island in the 1980s.
"They were starting the Super Bowl years. That's when I started watching Bruce Smith, Thurman Thomas, Andre Reed, and the boys, and I gravitated toward being a huge Bills fan. And also the Bills are the only team that plays in New York," Jerman said.
His dad passed away when he was in 7th grade, and as the youngest of five siblings, he couldn't afford to go to Bills games back then. He said despite their financial struggles, his mother always taught him and his siblings the importance of helping others.
"I've always had a big heart, and I love being able to help people out. I'm the kind of person that would give my shirt off my back to help other people out. I was raised that way. I enjoy it. I love being able to put a smile on somebody's face," Jerman said.
Seven years ago, Jerman moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, where he still lives and works as a finance director at two auto dealerships. He also owns his own trucking company. He's been a Bills season ticket holder for the past 15 years, and now he almost never misses a game — home or away.
"I work hard. I make a good living, and I like sharing. For me it's about sharing and making people happy. That's what I care most about," said Jerman.
He makes sure anyone who wants to go a Bills game gets to.
"It's not about the money," Jerman said. "It's about helping people out, and it's the experience for me."
He's quietly been giving away Bills tickets for a decade, but his generosity got a lot of attention a couple years ago he went on Twitter and raffled off a pair of season tickets. They went to a local mom and her son.
"The amount of happiness that this has brought me is just incredible," said Felicia Gross.
Jerman said he still hears from them.
"They still talk about it to this day. They still send me DMs. Her son always talks about how they were able to go to the Bills games for a whole year. So it was really cool," he said.
Jerman has given out or raffled off hundreds of tickets, airfare to games, jerseys, and more. This month he bought $1,500 worth of gift cards to give out for the holidays. Bills fans saw his raffle on Twitter and chipped in even more, and he ended up giving out nearly two dozen gift cards totaling $8,100.
"Bills Mafia are known for going through tables and being rowdy at the games, which some fans are, but another part of Bills Mafia is being generous and helping people out. Buffalo is known as the 'City of Good Neighbors,' and we look out for each other. We're all one big family," said Jerman.
LeShawn Jerman can be found on Twitter under the handle @warloc6.