Iconic Rock Star Admits Mick Foley Made Them A Better Man

Mick Foley made his name as a wrestling legend over a career that took in WCW, Japan, ECW, TNA, and most famously WWE but it’s his exploits outside the ring that inspired one rock legend.

Mick Foley is, simply put, a sweetheart of a man. The former WWE Champion devotes time to sick kids, playing Santa Claus and spreading the spirit of Christmas to those worse off. His actions over the years and commitment to charity work have not gone unnoticed and changed the mindset of Twisted Sister’s Dee Snider.

Speaking on Side Jams with Bryan Reesman Snider discussed his friendship with Foley and how it was the Hardcore Legend who opened his eyes to what it really means to give back:

Mick Foley, the wrestler — Mankind, Cactus Jack, Dude Love, and all those characters — he and I became very good friends. We lived near each other on Long Island, and we met and connected. Mick does an insane amount of charity, and without making a big deal about it. Amazing.

Put it this way — the man’s married and he’s got three or four kids. Mick would just in his spare time, go and knock on doors and show up at kids’ houses that he knew were dying of cancer and were fans of his, and hang out and watch TV with them.

And he called me one day and says, ‘Listen, I’m visiting a kid in the hospital. He’s got leukemia, he’s a big fan of yours. Would you come with me?’ So I went to the hospital and met this kid and saw what the kid got out of it, out of just that moment. When Mick drove me home, I said, ‘Mick, you made me a better man today.’ I’m getting a little choked up because I was so shaken.

I said [to myself], ‘Look at what Mick does, and look at what you don’t do.’ At the point, it was in the early 2000s, where I said, ‘I need to do more. I need to give back. I need to say yes.’ And not just send a guitar. By the way, all celebrities get these invitations, these opportunities to do more, and most of us just blow it off or send them an autographed picture or something. Thank you, Mick Foley, for waking me up and showing me that we can help. And there’s something more that we need to do.

Mick Foley Dons Santa Suit Once Again

Mick Foley shocked fans by appearing as Santa Claus at a recent independent show. Foley is also an activist for RAINN, raising thousands of dollars for the charity but working with them as well to talk to survivors of abuse on the charity’s hotline.