— Thurman Thomas recalled a phone call he received a couple week

ORCHARD PARK http://www.buffalobillsteamonline.com/phillip-gaines-jersey , N.Y. (AP) s ago from former Buffalo Bills teammate Bruce Smith."Do yo know what it means to have your jersey retired?" Smith asked Thomas. "Do you realize the importance?""I do now," Thomas told to a sold-out crowd at New Era Field on Monday night. "Now that I'm here with you, I realize it even more." The Bills retired Thomas' No. 34 during a ceremony at halftime of Buffalo's game against the New England Patriots. He is the third player in Bills history to receive the honor. Jim Kelly had his No. 12 retired in 2001, and Smith's No. 78 was retired in 2016.With the lights turned out at the sold-out stadium, highlights from Thomas' Hall of Fame career were shown on the video scoreboard while two spotlights projected 34s onto the field.Retired ESPN broadcaster Chris Berman introduced Thomas, who was joined by his family on an elevated platform at midfield. His name and number were unveiled on a wall above the east end zone."When I look up and see the No. 34 retired under my name, I'll be reminded that number doesn't just belong to me http://www.buffalobillsteamonline.com/stephen-hauschka-jersey ," Thomas said. "It belongs to the Bills fans everywhere."Kelly and Smith were among several former teammates who watched the ceremony on the field. Hall of Fame coach Marv Levy and former general manager Bill Polian were also among the group.Earl Campbell, one of two Hall of Fame running backs, along with Walter Payton, who inspired Thomas to wear No. 34, recorded a video message for the ceremony.Thomas played 12 of his 13 seasons in Buffalo and is the franchise's all-time leading in rushing yards (11,938) and yards from scrimmage (16,279). He was voted NFL MVP and Offensive Player of the Year in 1991 and led the league in yards from scrimmage in four straight seasons from 1989-92.The Bills put Thomas on their Wall of Fame in 2005 Youth LeSean McCoy Jersey , two years before he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.Nine other players have worn No. 34 for the Bills, including Cookie Gilchrist, the 1962 American Football League MVP and star of Buffalo's 1964 AFL championship team.Oklahoma State College and Willowridge High School in Houston have also honored Thomas by retiring No. 34. The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation is helping remake waterfronts and improving recreational trail systems in two former Rust Belt cities that meant so much to the late former owner of pro football's Buffalo Bills.The Detroit-based philanthropy on Wednesday announced investments of $50 million each for West Riverfront Park in Detroit and LaSalle Park in Buffalo, New York. Each is being renamed Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Centennial Park.Another $50 million each will go to support regional trails in southeastern Michigan and western New York.Wednesday's announcement marks what would have been Wilson's 100th birthday. Wilson died in 2014 at age 95 at his Grosse Pointe Shores home in suburban Detroit.He was born in Columbus, Ohio, but his family moved to Detroit. Wilson took over his father's insurance business, and in 1959 he founded the Bills and helped establish the American Football League."Ralph was committed to exercise Youth Charles Clay Jersey , staying active and enjoying life," his widow, Mary Wilson, said in a release. "It would make Ralph so happy to see people of all ages enjoying these enhanced parks and trails for years to come."West Riverfront Park is 22 acres (8.9 hectares) along the Detroit River. It's part of the Detroit RiverFront Conservancy's plan to develop 5.5 miles (8.8 kilometers) of the riverfront.The 77-acre (31-hectare) LaSalle Park sits where the Niagara River meets Lake Erie. A planning grant from the Wilson Foundation supported a community engagement process led by Buffalo city officials and the University at Buffalo Regional Institute to create a vision for the park."Foundations don't build parks. Communities build parks," said David Egner, the foundation's president and chief executive."The signature parks mirror each other in many ways, with both situated at the front door to each city and region along an urban waterfront and international border Youth Kelvin Benjamin Jersey ," Egner added. He said the foundation also wanted to fill in gaps in trails running through southeastern Michigan and western New York.Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown calls Wilson one of the city's "greatest champions.""His vision illuminated our landscape and his humanity enriched our community," Brown said.Prior to Wednesday's announcement, the Wilson Foundation already had invested $25 million in parks and trails in the Buffalo area and southeastern Michigan.The foundation focuses on projects to benefit children, young adults, working-class families, caregivers and livable communities.