"I would partner up with Best Buddies, we would visit the food banks and Children's, and it was just something that was normal for guys to do," Edelman said.
"As a young player, when you see the older guys getting involved, you are going to want to do exactly what they are. And then you fall in love with it when you really see what it does for these kids."
Edelman's first visit was to the hospital of a baby girl who was wearing a navy No. 11 Patriots onesie.
The infant obviously wasn't alive for Edelman's career, but her parents are massive fans, and meeting the three-time Super Bowl champion helped to lift their spirits. Same goes for the teenage boy and set of parents Edelman visited next.
After that was story time, and Edelman read his children's book, _Flying High_, to a group of 10 children receiving treatment.
He posed for pictures, answered questions, signed autographs, and was given a special piece of artwork from a little boy named C.J.
Edelman vowed to hang the art, a colored-in picture of himself, on the "Wall of Fame" that serves as a backdrop on his show, _Games With Names._
"I remember coming to these things when I didn't have a kid and it had an impact on me," Edelman said of his daughter Lily.
"Having an eight year old girl now, you know, it's just a blessing to go and help these parents, the kids -- everything that they're going through. It's heartache to be in that situation. The fact that they are, if you can change their day for an hour, a minute, I think that goes a long way."