49ers Name Jon Weeks 2026 Perry/Yonamine Award
Long snapper Jon Weeks earns the team's unity and community award, with the club donating $10,000 to the High Fives Foundation in his honor.
Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Philanthropy
The San Francisco 49ers named long snapper Jon Weeks the 2026 Perry/Yonamine Unity Award recipient, an honor selected by his teammates. The team will donate $10,000 to the High Fives Foundation in recognition of Weeks' efforts.
Why it matters
The award recognizes a player's commitment to team unity and giving back to the community, and it is chosen by teammates rather than management. The donation directs support to a nonprofit serving athletes who have suffered life-changing injuries.
The 49ers will donate $10,000 to the High Fives Foundation, a nonprofit supporting athletes who have experienced life-changing injuries. The extraction provides no further financial comparator or operational metric for the donation.
The players
Jon Weeks
Jon Weeks is a long snapper for the San Francisco 49ers who previously earned Walter Payton Man of the Year nomination with the Houston Texans in 2023.
High Fives Foundation
The High Fives Foundation is a nonprofit organization that supports athletes who have experienced life-changing injuries.
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area and a member of the National Football League.
The details
Weeks was selected by his teammates for the award, which honors a 49ers player's commitment to unity and community service. He took part in the team's Crucial Catch Art Therapy event, creating custom Levi's jackets with teammates and cancer warriors, and walked hand in hand with a cancer warrior during a pregame red carpet walk. He also joined a Big Brothers Big Sisters baking event with local youth.
Timeline
2011: Former 49ers players Joe Perry and Wally Yonamine died, and the award is named in their honor.
2023: Weeks was named the Houston Texans' Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee.
2026 season: Weeks participated in the Crucial Catch and community events.
November 5, 2026: The 49ers announced Weeks as the 2026 Perry/Yonamine Unity Award recipient.
Philanthropy Landscape
The Perry/Yonamine Unity Award is named for former 49ers players Joe Perry and Wally Yonamine, who died in 2011, and it is selected annually by a player's teammates. This year's recipient extends that tradition by pairing team recognition with a $10,000 donation to the High Fives Foundation.
Fans of the 49ers and supporters of the High Fives Foundation can follow how the donation is directed toward athletes recovering from serious injuries. The award's selection by teammates means community recognition comes from within the locker room rather than from the front office.
The takeaway
Team-selected honors like the Perry/Yonamine Unity Award show how community commitment can be recognized from within an organization. Readers interested in giving can look at how sports teams direct charitable funds to causes tied to their athletes' experiences.
Further reading
For more on giving in the Bay Area, see Philanthropy in San Francisco business coverage.
