Steak & Steak Dinner to feature Super Bowl MVP

The man currently on top of the professional football world is making a stop in Springfield in May.

Drew Brees, quarterback of the Super Bowl XLIV champion New Orleans Saints and the game's Most Valuable Player, will be the keynote speaker for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Springfield's 14th annual Steak & Steak Dinner and Auction May 18 at University Plaza.

Brees, an eight-year National Football League veteran, has been elected to three Pro Bowls, was a member of the 2006 All-Pro Team, and received the 2004 Comeback Player of the Year, the 2006 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award and the 2008 NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award.

Brees also works for charity; he and his wife founded The Brees Dream Foundation in 2003, raising more than $4.5 million for cancer research and providing education opportunities for children in New Orleans, San Diego, and the West Lafayette, Ind., areas. In 2008, he received the Horizon Award, given annually by Congress for excellence in community service.

The Steak & Steak Dinner is Boys & Girls Clubs of Springfield's largest annual fundraising event, according to an organization news release. Funds from the dinner bridge the gap between the $25 fee club members pay each semester and the $550 in costs to provide services. The fundraising goal for the 2010 dinner is $100,000, according to the organization's Web site.

Past keynote speakers at the event include University of North Carolina men's basketball coach Roy Williams, Hall of Fame St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson, NFL tight end Tony Gonzalez and former St. Louis Rams and Kansas City Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil.

The May 18 event, sponsored by Metropolitan National Bank, begins at 5 p.m. with a VIP reception and silent auction, with the dinner beginning at 7 p.m. Individual tickets for the event are $150. Click here for more information.