While the confetti and the streamers continued to fall at the noisy NRG Super Bowl LI Stadium in Houston, the New England Patriots celebrated their championship win for the ages. Among the players and coaches commemorating the most improbable victory were New England team chaplain Don Davis and special teams veteran Mathew Slater.

That’s because the Patriots, newly crowned Super Bowl Champions, are one of the many professional football teams who use chaplains in their athlete workplaces, just as many Houston-area companies, some just miles from the Super Bowl site, use Marketplace Chaplains for their employees and family members.

“Three years from now, most people can’t tell you who the Super Bowl champion was, but we know the real champion is the work we’re doing in those guys’ lives and their families,” said Davis. “We’re here to help all and to care for all and that’s what is most important.”

Less than ten miles from this year’s Super Bowl location, leading insurance provider InsurMark has used Marketplace Chaplains for several years, bringing a needed benefit to the fast-paced industry and the growing business

“Having Chaplains associated with our team at InsurMark has been one of the most successful and fulfilling decision we have made for our associates and their family members,” said CEO Steve Kerns. “Seeing the relationship these dedicated men and women have with our people is one of the truly great things about going to work every day.”

Houston Baptist University was one of the sponsors of the NFL Super Bowl Breakfast the day before the big game, which awarded Slater its annual Bart Starr Award, but President Robert Sloan said Marketplace Chaplains has also made a big difference for his university. “Just to know they’re there on a regular basis and are available whenever needed, they’re a great representative of HBU,” Sloan said.

Slater, who spoke in person at the Super Bowl Breakfast before leaving for a Patriots team meeting, said having a chaplain has been very helpful both for his Super Bowl winning team and the workplace as a whole. “We all have problems and we all need someone to talk with about our problems,” Slater said. “As athletes and workers, we all have a platform in our lives, but without my faith and my help, I wouldn’t have a faithful platform to stand on.”

According to a Wikipedia research article, American professional sports teams are among the most comprehensive and proactive in having chaplains. A 1982 international conference in Hong Kong expanded sports chaplaincy to various sports leagues in countries around the world.

Marketplace Chaplains CEO and Executive President Doug Fagerstrom said the use for workplace chaplains for both Super Bowl Champions and workplaces around the country has proven to be an effective workplace tool in an executive’s toolbox. “Every employee of every company, regardless of size or industry, needs someone to talk to about their hurts, pain, decisions, fears and failures,” he said.  “Our Marketplace Chaplains are available 24/7 to listen, encourage and offer hope with confidential non-judgmental care.”

Marketplace Chaplains currently serves in 770 companies in 3,000 different locations with more than 1,500 trained, caring and confidential chaplains serving 683,000 employees and their family members.

For more information on this unique employee benefit which has been featured in Marketplace Chaplains on CNN, /NBC Nightly News, and in the Washington Post, the New York Times and Bloomberg BusinessWeek, visit https://mchapusa.com.

About Marketplace Chaplains:  To arrange an interview with a Marketplace Chaplain, contact Art Stricklin, Vice President Public Relations, at artstricklin@mchapusa.com or call 1-800-775-7657.