Professional athletes all have their own reason for being in the game. Some of them are there just for their athleticism and the money, but some play for the love of the game and the positive impact they can have on the people around them.

Tim Tebow is one of the professional athletes whose fellowship is contagious. He’s a humble man with a thick skin who isn’t afraid to share his faith. Not only that, but he has a magnetic personality that draws people to him.

He dedicates hundreds of hours to the Tim Tebow Foundation, but there is one group of people that Tebow really has a soft spot for. He loves to work with people with special needs.

Tebow and his team, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, recently traveled to New Jersey to play the Trenton Thunder. At the game, the Thunder’s bat boy quickly caught Tebow’s eye. Tommy Smith is a popular figure at Arm & Hammer Park, and he has Down syndrome.

Tebow made a move to try to convince Tommy to switch dugouts. At first, Tommy seemed to waiver between Tebow’s charm and his loyalty to his team, but eventually Tebow won out. The opposing bat boy threw on a Rumble Ponies jersey and stood beside Tebow during the National Anthem.

“He’s awesome,” said Tebow. “I was trying to get him to come over and hang with us and be our bat boy, and for some reason he wouldn’t do it. He even said yes, and then after a minute he was like, ‘No I gotta stay.'”

The Thunder won the game 7 to 3. Thunder coach, Jay Bell, even joked about trading his bat boy. “Tim is really good with Tommy and people who are around the baseball field like Tommy. He’s extraordinary. He’s done a really good job. I’ve heard nothing but fantastic stories about him,” said Bell.

Bell continued and said that Tommy has wanted to go to Binghamton. “I may draw up some papers tomorrow, so we’ll see,” said the coach. The 27-year-old bat boy didn’t just make an impression on the Thunder’s coach. Tebow had a few things to say about Tommy too.

“I love it every time he gets a bat and he starts putting his hands up and getting crowd hype,” said Tebow. “It brings me a lot of joy to watch that and also watch the crowd react to him.”

Tebow says that no matter how busy his schedule is, he will always find time to uplift others. “You’ve got to have a little balance,” said Tebow. “I stay involved in the Tim Tebow Foundation heavily and working on that and everything that we’re doing at the foundation and everything else we’ve got going on.”

How can you not just love Tim Tebow? Be sure to share this heartwarming story with your family and friends. The one thing the world needs is more people like Tebow.