This Christmas gift landed squarely in the end zone.
A daughter in Mississippi brought her father to tears after surprising him with the prized football card he sold three decades earlier to provide for his young family.
In a heartwarming video shared on TikTok, Lindsey Moore told her dedicated dad she had dreamed of returning the rookie Dan Marino card since watching him swap it for cash when she was just 7 years old.
Moore’s mother read aloud her daughter’s holiday card detailing her life mission as he father slowly grew more emotional.
“Money was tight, so you were selling your most prized possession – at least what I viewed it as. I felt your sacrifice and it taught me that I would do whatever necessary to ensure my future family never needed for anything. It was a lesson that has stuck with me since that moment and taught me the value of the greater good,” Moore wrote in the card.
Although it’s not clear how much the Marino rookie card sold for in the 1990s — the early days of his 17-season NFL career — similar cards go for $5,000 on average today, as seen on eBay.
The highly decorated quarterback is considered by many one of the greatest players to never win a Super Bowl.
“I will never be able to fully repay that debt. Seven-year-old me would be so elated to see that I finally fulfilled that promise I made to myself. Thank you for everything,” Moore wrote.
Her mother slapped the card shut and covered her face to halt a stream of tears — but it was too late.
Moore’s father had already wiped away a few when he finally picked up the gift bag.
“I know what it is,” he said before pulling out his long-lost football card.
The father and daughter pair then embraced in an emotional hug as a young boy off-camera unwittingly questions whether the football card could be his grandfather’s “prized possession.”
