Alan Veingrad
Encyclopedia
Alan Stuart Veingrad, now known as Shlomo Veingrad (born July 24, 1963, in Brooklyn
, New York
) is a former American football
offensive lineman in the National Football League
.
Veingrad played for the Green Bay Packers
for five seasons, and two seasons for the Dallas Cowboys
(who won Super Bowl XXVII
), playing in a total of 86 games.
, and grew up in a Jewish household, but never embraced religion until a later point in his life.
on scholarship at East Texas State University (now Texas A&M University–Commerce
), where he was an All-America
n and also won National Strength and Conditioning All-America honors. He was inducted into the school's Athletic Hall of Fame in October 2006.
Veingrad played for the Green Bay Packers
for five seasons, from 1986–90, and two seasons for the Dallas Cowboys
, 1991–92, who won Super Bowl XXVII
on January 31, 1993, playing in a total of 86 games.
National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame
Alan "Shlomo" Veingrad was inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday, April 19, 2010. The ceremony was held at at the Suffolk Y Jewish Community Center in Commack, New York
. The organization chronicles and celebrates Jewish involvement in all sports, and includes Jewish sports legends such as Sandy Koufax
, Red Auerbach
, Kerri Strug, and Hank Greenberg
.
Following the Super Bowl win, Veingrad retired from football back to Florida. He rediscovered his Jewish roots, and became an observant Jew, affiliated with the Chabad-Lubavitch
movement. He now uses his Hebrew first name, Shlomo, wears a kippah
and ritual fringes called tzitzit
, and travels around the country giving inspirational talks about his spiritual transformation.
Veingrad lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
, where he is employed in commercial real estate lending by a major national firm.
adherent, Rabbi Shais Taub, made headlines by hosting a "kosher tailgate party" at Lambeau Field
during the 2007 season.
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
) is a former American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
offensive lineman in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
.
Veingrad played for the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
for five seasons, and two seasons for the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
(who won Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII was a football game played on January 31, 1993 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California to decide the National Football League champion following the 1992 regular season. The National Football Conference champion Dallas Cowboys defeated the American Football Conference champion...
), playing in a total of 86 games.
Early life
Veingrad was born in Brooklyn and lived in New Jersey from ages 3 to 9, before moving to Miami. He went to Miami Sunset High SchoolMiami Sunset High School
Miami Sunset Senior High School is a secondary school of the Miami-Dade County Public Schools System located at 13125 SW 72nd Street in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, USA. Its principal is Lucia Cox....
, and grew up in a Jewish household, but never embraced religion until a later point in his life.
College career
He played college footballCollege football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
on scholarship at East Texas State University (now Texas A&M University–Commerce
Texas A&M University–Commerce
Texas A&M University–Commerce is a state university located in Commerce, Texas and a member of the Texas A&M University System, the second largest university within the system behind Texas A&M University in College Station....
), where he was an All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n and also won National Strength and Conditioning All-America honors. He was inducted into the school's Athletic Hall of Fame in October 2006.
NFL career
In 1986, Veingrad made the Green Bay Packers as the opening day starting offensive tackle.Veingrad played for the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
for five seasons, from 1986–90, and two seasons for the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
, 1991–92, who won Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII was a football game played on January 31, 1993 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California to decide the National Football League champion following the 1992 regular season. The National Football Conference champion Dallas Cowboys defeated the American Football Conference champion...
on January 31, 1993, playing in a total of 86 games.
National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame
Alan "Shlomo" Veingrad was inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday, April 19, 2010. The ceremony was held at at the Suffolk Y Jewish Community Center in Commack, New York
Commack, New York
Commack is a census-designated place that roughly corresponds to the hamlet by the same name in the towns of Huntington and Smithtown in Suffolk County, New York, United States on Long Island...
. The organization chronicles and celebrates Jewish involvement in all sports, and includes Jewish sports legends such as Sandy Koufax
Sandy Koufax
Sanford "Sandy" Koufax is a former left-handed baseball pitcher who played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers...
, Red Auerbach
Red Auerbach
Arnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach was an American basketball coach of the Washington Capitols, the Tri-Cities Blackhawks and the Boston Celtics. After he retired from coaching, he served as president and front office executive of the Celtics until his death...
, Kerri Strug, and Hank Greenberg
Hank Greenberg
Henry Benjamin "Hank" Greenberg , nicknamed "Hammerin' Hank" or "The Hebrew Hammer," was an American professional baseball player in the 1930s and 1940s. A first baseman primarily for the Detroit Tigers, Greenberg was one of the premier power hitters of his generation...
.
Retirement and Jewish roots
When Veingrad had begun his NFL career with Green Bay, a local Jewish man who ran a shoe store had reached out to him and asked him to join his family for the Rosh Hashana services at K'nesses Israel, a synagogue near the site of the Packers’ original home field, City Stadium. Veingrad had not spent much time in shul. “But when I heard the Hebrew,” he said, “I felt a pull.”Following the Super Bowl win, Veingrad retired from football back to Florida. He rediscovered his Jewish roots, and became an observant Jew, affiliated with the Chabad-Lubavitch
Chabad-Lubavitch
Chabad-Lubavitch is a Chasidic movement in Orthodox Judaism. One of the world's larger and best-known Chasidic movements, its official headquarters is in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, New York...
movement. He now uses his Hebrew first name, Shlomo, wears a kippah
Kippah
A kippah or kipa , also known as a yarmulke , kapele , is a hemispherical or platter-shaped head cover, usually made of cloth, often worn by Orthodox Jewish men to fulfill the customary requirement that their head be covered at all times, and sometimes worn by both men and, less frequently, women...
and ritual fringes called tzitzit
Tzitzit
The Hebrew noun tzitzit is the name for specially knotted ritual fringes worn by observant Jews. Tzitzit are attached to the four corners of the tallit and tallit katan.-Etymology:The word may derive from the semitic root N-TZ-H...
, and travels around the country giving inspirational talks about his spiritual transformation.
Veingrad lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
, where he is employed in commercial real estate lending by a major national firm.
Tailgate Party
He and fellow Chabad-LubavitchChabad-Lubavitch
Chabad-Lubavitch is a Chasidic movement in Orthodox Judaism. One of the world's larger and best-known Chasidic movements, its official headquarters is in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, New York...
adherent, Rabbi Shais Taub, made headlines by hosting a "kosher tailgate party" at Lambeau Field
Lambeau Field
Lambeau Field is an outdoor football stadium in Green Bay, Wisconsin, the home of the NFL's Green Bay Packers. Opened in 1957 as City Stadium, it replaced the original City Stadium as the Packers' home field...
during the 2007 season.
External links
- Alan Veingrad's website
- "Champion of Judaism", on PatheosPatheos- History :Patheos was founded in 2008 by Leo and Cathie Brunnick, both web technology professionals and residents of Denver, Colorado. Leo, a non-practicing Catholic, and Cathie, a Lutheran-turned-Evangelical, started the project the week they were married as they tried to blend their...
- Featured In Emunah Magazine