Kindness · todayPhoto: Mendoza Family FundApril 26, 2026 · Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Fernando Mendoza, quarterback
Pledged $500,000 to MS research the same week he was taken first overall in the NFL Draft. He had been fundraising for the disease since high school.
On the day Fernando Mendoza was selected first overall in the 2026 NFL Draft by the Las Vegas Raiders, he announced a $500,000 pledge to the National MS Society, earmarked for research at the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine. His mother, Elsa, is treated for multiple sclerosis there.
Fernando and his older brother Alberto have been raising money for MS since high school. A "Mendoza Burrito" at La Burrita in Berkeley got it started. A "Mendoza Burger" partnership in 2025 added $150,000. The running total, before this week's pledge, was over $360,000. One Christmas, they gave four families living with an MS diagnosis $10,000 each toward shopping at Adidas.