Man Who Loaned Teenage Patrick Mahomes $50 Now Struggles to Pay Medical Bills
Jim Wilson sat quietly in his modest condo, morning sunlight warming the room as he flipped through an old notebook filled with yellowed pages. The handwritten words transported him back to 1979, when the squeak of worn sneakers echoed through an empty gym. Patrick Mahomes, then a skinny sophomore, had just been cut from varsity, yet something in his eyes—determination blended with quiet desperation—compelled Coach Jim to believe in him. He remembered the worn sneakers, the silent tears, and the quiet pride he’d felt handing Patrick that $50 bill for new shoes.
“Pay me back when you make it big,” he had joked gently, never truly expecting repayment.
Now nearly seventy and recently widowed, Jim Wilson stared at the daunting stack of medical bills piled on his kitchen table. His hands trembled slightly as he reread the diagnoses: spinal stenosis, nerve damage, a surgery bill totaling over $150,000. Insurance covered less than half. After a lifetime of self-reliance, Jim felt trapped, his pride battling a reality he couldn’t escape.
Emily, Jim’s daughter, watched him closely, sensing his struggle. Her father had given everything to his players, community, and family without ever asking for anything in return. But now, their options had dwindled dangerously low. She knew her father would never ask, especially not Patrick Mahomes, despite the deep history between them. Yet, Emily could not let it rest. Secretly, she reached out, sending heartfelt letters to Patrick’s charities, his businesses, and even the Kansas City Chiefs.
Weeks passed, silence deepening Jim’s sense of helplessness. Finally, Emily launched a GoFundMe campaign—anonymously at Jim’s insistence. Donations trickled in slowly, far short of the mounting bills. Each contribution felt like a painful reminder of his vulnerability, a stark contrast to his years as a respected coach who’d quietly shaped countless young lives.
Just as Jim prepared to leave the rehab facility, uncertain of his future, something extraordinary happened. A mysterious benefactor stepped forward, anonymously covering all medical expenses, rehab costs, and even retrofitting Jim’s condo for accessibility. The generosity stunned Jim and his children.
“Dad,” Emily whispered, eyes wide with shock, “do you think…it’s him?”
Jim shook his head slowly. “Patrick doesn’t owe me anything.”
But deep inside, he wondered.
Days later, comfortably settled back home, Jim sat quietly reflecting when a gentle knock broke the silence. Emily opened the door, smiling mysteriously. Behind her stood a tall figure, sharply dressed yet instantly recognizable.
“Coach Wilson,” Patrick Mahomes said softly, stepping inside. “It’s been a long time.”
Jim stared in disbelief, emotion tightening his chest. “Patrick?” he whispered, struggling to rise.
“Please stay seated,” Patrick urged warmly, pulling up a chair beside him. “I owe you more than just money.”
Jim’s voice shook, overwhelmed. “You owed nothing. It was just $50.”
Patrick smiled gently, shaking his head. “It wasn’t just the shoes. You gave me hope when everyone else gave up. I’ve carried your belief with me through every championship, every setback. You taught me that hard work and determination matter more than talent alone.”
Jim glanced down, humbled. “I just did what felt right. You made yourself great.”
Patrick reached into his pocket, pulling out a small, worn keychain featuring a miniature football. “I carried this at every championship game,” he explained softly, pressing it gently into Jim’s hand. “It reminded me where I started, who helped me begin.”
Jim’s eyes filled with tears, memories flooding back vividly—the early mornings, Patrick’s determined eyes, those first white-and-blue sneakers. “I never thought something so small could matter so much,” he murmured.
Patrick smiled gently. “You taught me that. The smallest kindnesses sometimes create the biggest ripples. I never forgot.”
They sat quietly for a moment, absorbing the weight of shared memories. Finally, Patrick stood. “Care to throw some passes, Coach? I’ve reserved a gym.”
Jim laughed softly. “Not exactly in playing shape these days.”
“Just one throw,” Patrick encouraged. “Like old times.”
Later, at the local community center court, Jim sat in his wheelchair beneath the basket. Patrick handed him the ball. “One more lesson, Coach.”
With shaky hands, Jim took aim. The first throw missed, clanking loudly. Patrick caught the ball smoothly, passing it back. “Again.”
Jim focused, remembering the countless mornings coaching Patrick’s form. This time, the ball arced perfectly, sinking through the net with a satisfying swish.
Patrick grinned, eyes bright. “There it is. The throw that launched a legend.”
Jim smiled back, his heart light for the first time in months. Watching Patrick chase down the ball like a teenager again, he realized that the bond between them had never faded. Gratitude, he now understood, flowed in circles, quietly returning when needed most.
That evening, as Patrick said goodbye, Jim felt an immense sense of peace. He hadn’t just received help; he’d reclaimed a part of himself he thought lost.
At the door, Patrick paused, turning back briefly. “Coach, thank you—for everything.”
Jim nodded, tears in his eyes. “Thank you, Patrick. You’ve given me back more than you’ll ever know.”
As the door closed, Jim sank into his chair, clutching the tiny football keychain. Patrick’s words echoed softly in his mind:
Sometimes, the smallest kindnesses create the biggest ripples.
Jim knew it was true because, after all, he’d seen it first in a skinny teenager named Patrick Mahomes.
Randi Mahomes Says Being a ‘Young’ Mom to Patrick Forced Her to ‘Grow Up in a Great Way’
“He was my little best friend,” the NFL star’s mom tells PEOPLE exclusively ahead of his fourth Super Bowl appearance
Randi Mahomes/Instagram
Randi and Patrick Mahomes
Before Patrick Mahomes was an NFL star, his mom, Randi Mahomes, was a young mom with a lot on her plate.
Now, she’s reflecting on her journey raising the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback ahead of his fourth Super Bowl appearance in an interview with PEOPLE.
“Patrick is my first child, and I grew up with him basically,” says Randi, 48. “I had him at a young age, and I don’t go out saying that’s the best thing to do, but it was the best thing for me just because it made me grow up.”
The mother-of-three says she felt directionless just before learning she was pregnant with Patrick in 1995 at age 20. “Sometimes, I look back and I’m like, ‘Where would I be if I didn’t have him?’ Because I wasn’t going down a bad road, I just wasn’t going on a road,” Randi says.
Randi shares Patrick, 28, and Jackson Mahomes, 23, with Pat Mahomes Sr. She is also mom to Mia Randall, 12, from another relationship.
Randi Mahomes/Instagram
Randi and Patrick Mahomes
After graduating high school, she moved out of her parents’ house and was “kind of living on friends’ couches for a few years,” she says. But having Patrick “changed” her into “a whole new person.”
“It was kind of like flipping a coin.”
Randi is the youngest of four children, and her mother, Debbie, was the youngest of 11 kids. “So, I have 50-something first cousins,” says Randi. Still, she didn’t have any experience raising children until Patrick was born.
Suddenly, “I had someone that needed me,” says Randi. “And so, for forever, he was my little best friend. We were together 24/7, and I learned with him.”
Randi Mahomes/Instagram
Randi and Patrick Mahomes
She continues, “He made me grow up in a good way, in a great way. Being a mother is my favorite thing sometimes, and sometimes it’s hard, but it is my favorite thing, and I always say, ‘Where would I be without it?’ “
Randi Mahomes/Instagram
Randi, Patrick, and Jackson Mahomes, Mia Randall
Patrick was born in 1995, Jackson in 2000 and Mia in 2011. The age difference was an initial concern for Randi, who worried that Patrick and Mia “wouldn’t really know each other” because of the gap, but the mother-of-three says all of her children have fostered “special” relationships with one another.
“[Patrick] is always keeping tabs on what Mia’s doing, both him and Brittany [Mahomes]. It’s a fun relationship for them to have, and being that I was so nervous they wouldn’t know each other, I can say now that they know each other.”
Randi Mahomes/Instagram
Patrick Mahomes with little sister Mia Randall
Randi adds, “I’ll send him clips of her basketball games, and he’s like, ‘Well, tell me what she scored,’ and then he’ll ask all about it, and I do that with Jackson and him both.”
And despite years of watching Patrick on the field, Randi says she still gets nervous seeing him play.
Tom Pennington/Getty Patrick Mahomes mother, Randi
“I still get nervous. The gray hair, I tell him, I’m like, ‘You’re giving me gray hair, and it’s not because I’m a grandma now, it’s because I’m having to watch you hit by 300 pound guys.’ Usually when I’m screaming at the game, it’s like, ‘Don’t hit him. Don’t hit him.’ “
On Sunday, Randi will be at Allegiant Stadium as Patrick and the Kansas City Chiefs look to defend their title as the NFL champions against the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII. She’s, of course, rooting for the Chiefs, but Randi will come away from the game happy regardless of the outcome.
“I get to see all my children together, and I get to see my grandkids, so I’m like, ‘I’m winning no matter what.’ ”
