By: Lindsey Young
Every Friday, lifelong Vikings fan Jimmy Guidos visits an elementary school in Anaheim, California.
He sets up a sneaker-cleaning station and wipes down students' shoes, giving new life to well-used kicks.
But Guidos also talks to the kids. He connects with them.
Conversations sometimes revolve around recess or homework, or a student will notice the Vikings Norseman among the numerous pins adorning Guidos' lanyard strap and show off their Griddy moves. Being on the West Coast, many of the young people Guidos meets follow NFL teams other than the Vikings; but most nonetheless share an infatuation with Justin Jefferson.
Oftentimes, talking about a mutual love of football will lead to deeper discussions around family, home life and the ups and downs of school.
Along with refreshed sneakers, children walk away knowing there's another advocate in their corner.
"I get to talk with them about, really, anything and everything they want to come talk to me about," said Guidos, who is approaching nine years working with Western Youth Services, a mental health nonprofit. "We work in tandem with teachers, counselors, psychologists. Really working with disciplinary teams at schools and individually with students to help them with their social-emotional learning, help them develop positive relationships with their peers, help them with self-regulation, self-awareness, social awareness — all these beautiful things we get to teach kids."
Guidos currently is serving 23 different school sites, which he visits before and after school hours, and where he's established his #FIREFRIDAYS sneaker-cleaning program.
He noted the "big, big world" that's opened up to him through shoes, which have always been important to him and often are important to youth.
"You know what they say: 'You look good, you feel good.' But most of the time when I was growing up, they weren't necessarily the sneakers I wanted," Guidos recalled. "It was, 'What are the shoes that my family can afford for me right now? Knowing my parents are working jobs, I'm the firstborn, now I have siblings and we've gotta get shoes for them.'
"A lot of times for these kids, it's not the shoe they want — it's what shoe can we afford? What shoe is sustainable? What shoe is going to still fit you a few months down the road? I always tell kids, 'It's not the shoes you wear; it's how you're wearing them. It's what you do while you're wearing them. Are you listening to your family? Are you listening at school? Do you have the resources available so you can reach your full potential?' " Guidos continued.
In addition to cleaning up students' shoes, he keeps his eyes and ears open for those young people who need a new pair. Guidos then either personally purchases a pair to gift them, or he finds the right size in a collection he's gathered from donations.
"Then there's that moment, 'Hey, you have somebody who's looking out for you. You have someone else out here who cares about you,' " Guidos said. "Sometimes these kids look for family outside of their family, and I want to make sure they're searching for that in the most positive ways. And if that's a way I can plant that seed — 'It's not the shoes I wear. It's not the clothes I wear. It's me. I'm valuable because I'm me and because I'm here' — that means the world to me."
Early influences
Guidos was born and raised in South California (or "SKOL-Cal," as he calls it now), and it was his first video game console that led to his forever Vikings fandom.
Guidos remembers his parents gifting him and his siblings a Nintendo 64, and he often competed against his younger brother in NFL Blitz, which came out in November of 1997. Fast forward a handful of months into the 1998 NFL season, and you can guess which team topped the charts in multiple offensive ratings.
"I picked the Vikings every time because not only did I want to beat my little brother at this game, but I also remember seeing the Norseman logo for the first time and just [being drawn to it]. I could sense that pride," Guidos said. "And I started to fall in love with the legacy and fandom of the Vikings and all the incredible players at the time: Cris Carter, Randy Moss, Daunte Culpepper, et cetera. It was awesome to see what they were doing on the field, and I started to learn more about them as people, too."
A Los Angeles Lakers fan, Guidos also came to realize the NBA team with similar purple and gold colors had originated in Minneapolis … and it all seemed like it was meant to be.
Guidos' affinity for sports was a big part of his identity growing up, as was celebrating his family's Latino heritage. And while he's deeply proud of his ethnicity, he noted that within Latino culture there are sometimes stigmas — especially among males — toward expressing personal feelings and emotions.
Guidos grew up in a home environment where "you're just kind of expected to push through what you're going through." He recounted returning home after difficult school days and seeking to share his experience but being told, "Hey, don't worry about it. Just don't listen to them."
"It's not a fault to my family … That's just how they grew up and how they learned to deal with their emotions and the things they were going through," Guidos said. "But I then started to really suppress things — a lot of the bullying, the name calling. I was a short, stout kid, and I was always kind of the darker one at the school."
He'll never forget a 10th grade English teacher, Ms. Novotny, who tremendously impacted his life as a struggling high schooler. Guidos will never forget the day "Ms. K" asked him the simplest of questions — "How are you?" — and struck a chord with him.
"She asked me that in a way that was so authentic. I literally almost broke down," he said. "I talked to her about how difficult high school was and being the oldest sibling at home and those responsibilities. It was that teacher who changed me in ways I'm so incredibly thankful for."
Guidos' formative years were difficult; but it was the above experiences, positive and negative alike, that inspired him in adulthood to press into mental health studies and to pursue a master's degree in school counseling. He is set to graduate in May 2027.
"That's where my heart is," he said. "I want to continue serving these students and making a difference in their lives the way Ms. K did for me."
Making a Vikings difference
Guidos may live nearly 2,000 miles from the team he roots for, but his love for the Vikings and for mental health support intersect daily for him.
In addition to connecting with young people over their NFL fandom, Guidos is currently running Year 3 of a shoe drive to collect donations for those students who need the most support. He also is looking forward to a second year of creating a custom Vikings shoe to raise money for a Minnesota nonprofit tied to the mental health space.
Guidos last season attended "SKOL Fest," a gathering of Vikings fans started by diehard supporters from outside Minnesota. Ahead of traveling to the Twin Cities, Guidos teamed up with artist Brandon Johnston ("He's big on storytelling and big on intentionality") to create a Vikings-themed Nike shoe that was then raffled off at the fan gathering.
"We put our heads together, put that shoe together, and we were able to donate $540 to the Thielen Foundation," Guidos proudly reported. "We got to give a Vikings fan a shoe with a story — of community, of purpose — and it was such a cool thing to be a part of.
"We donated the money that same night," he added. "It's just super cool when worlds collide. My love for shoes, my love for the Vikings, my love for helping kids. It was incredibly special.
"We can love a team," Guidos continued, "But do we also love the community that team comes from? How do we give back with our fandom? Let's pool our resources, give back. Let's really do something."
Guidos is thankful for the Vikings work in supporting mental health and for the players past and present who have been open about their own experiences in hopes of helping others — especially young men who may not feel comfortable being vulnerable.
Guidos emphasized that "sports are a gateway" to build camaraderie with others, and the Vikings demonstrate that time and time again.
"We're reminded these pro athletes are human, too. They're real people. Yes, they have a professional job, and they're gifted with these talents, but at the end of the day, they have real emotions just like we do," Guidos said. "I think it creates that relatable factor — 'Wow, there's someone out there who I look up to, and they also deal with the things I deal with.' They're not just these superhumans we see on TV. They have real experiences that brought them to where they're at.
"A lot of these athletes didn't grow up in the most glamorous [of situations]. They had to grit, they had to grind, they had to break down those barriers we've talked about," he continued. "When players and teams speak up, it reminds kids it's OK to talk about these things. They're so real. Find that person you look up to; find community in sports. This fandom, it connects you with others. We all are wired for connection."
And so Guidos will continue to build relationships through his passion for football and sneakers.
He'll continue to show up for young people and chat about Justin Jefferson or their favorite rivalries, and he'll offer them a lot more than clean shoes.
"Research shows it takes one constant, caring, stable adult outside of the home to make that difference in a child's life. Sometimes you might be their only champion. Sometimes you may be the one who says, 'I believe in you' or 'I care about what's going on,' " Guidos said. "For these families sometimes working multiple jobs and trying to balance their own life stressors, we can be that bridge to really provide mental health support. To provide that consistency outside of the home.
"Serving students brings me purpose, brings me joy," he added. "I thank them. Because as I tell them, 'Without you guys, I wouldn't be here.' A lot of the times it's just making sure kids know their value and their importance. Not because you're great at sports. Not because you're gifted in math. You're special because you're here and you have intrinsic value."
