Kansas City Chiefs Linebacker Drue Tranquill, Minsky’s Pizza, and the Hunt Family Foundation raise over $170,000 for Operation Breakthrough!
During the 2025-2026 NFL season, Minsky’s Pizza once again teamed up with Kansas City Chiefs Linebacker Drue Tranquill for year two of Drue’s gameday Gourmet Pizza creation – The Tranquilo Crunch! A delicious protein-packed pizza where a portion of proceeds benefited Kansas City’s Operation Breakthrough. Thanks to a hungry Chiefs Kingdom, a donation from Minsky’s Pizza on every Tranquilo purchase, a significant personal matching donation from Drue Tranquill and his family, and an additional contribution from the Hunt Family Foundation, $96,000 was raised this past football season and, combined with $75,000 raised the previous season, over $170,000 has been raised through the sale of over 28,000 Tranquilo’s – Drue’s delicious meat-packed pizza – with a Crunch!
In June 2025, Tranquill and Minsky’s Pizza announced plans for “Zone 23” – an outdoor sports activity area at Operation Breakthrough (named as a tribute to Drue’s jersey number). Zone 23 represents Drue and his family’s commitment to building a lasting physical feature at Operation Breakthrough, a place where kids can be physically active while learning the many values of sports in life. Ground was broken in late fall of 2025, and on August 25, 2026, Zone 23 became a reality during a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Operation Breakthrough with Drue and Minsky’s Pizza managers. Featuring a pickleball court, a basketball court, a giant outdoor chess set, and a host of other outdoor competition and play areas, Zone 23 is a highly dynamic and energetic addition to Operation Breakthrough.
According to Tranquill:
“I’m excited for the grand opening of Zone 23 and all the future good that it will do in the Kansas City community. Sports are a great teacher. They teach us invaluable lessons in teamwork, leadership, and self-discipline. Participation in sports can positively impact our physical and mental health. Tranquilo proceeds and donations from year one allowed us to break ground on Zone 23. The year two donation allowed us to complete the first phase of Zone 23, a place that will positively impact the thousands of kids and parents Operation Breakthrough serves in Kansas City each month. Thanks to a hungry Chiefs Kingdom, bringing The Tranquilo Crunch and the funding it provides back for year three will elevate Zone 23 to an even higher level!”
Minsky’s Pizza and Drue Tranquill presenting a check to Operation Breakthrough.
Drue said he was originally inspired to help Operation Breakthrough thanks to Chiefs teammate Travis Kelce, who partnered for three years with Minsky’s on their collaborative “Kelceroni” gameday pizza, raising over $135,000 for Operation Breakthrough. Those funds helped grow the STEM Lab at Operation Breakthrough – and Travis’ generosity ultimately led to the development of the Ignition Lab at Operation Breakthrough, converting a former muffler shop into a state-of-the-art workforce development training program that Travis continues to support.
Minsky’s launched The Tranquilo Crunch in all Kansas City metro area restaurants during the 2024- 2025 Chiefs season with high hopes. As the season began, Minsky’s goal for The Tranquilo Crunch pizza was to raise over $25,000 during the entire football season. Drue’s goal for The Tranquilo Crunch was to beat Travis’s first-year proceeds from The Kelceroni of $65,000.
Thanks to Chiefs Kingdom and their love for the Tranquilo Crunch, initial donation goals of $25,000 were blown out of the water – as was Drue’s goal of beating Travis’ first-year Kelceroni pizza donation of $65,000. During the 2024-2025 season, The Tranquilo Crunch campaign led to a combined total of $75,000 donated to Operation Breakthrough!
Said Minsky’s founder, Gregg Johnson:
“Drue is a great guy with a wonderful family. Drue and Jackie have really embraced the Kansas City community, and they wanted to do something notable to demonstrate their gratitude to KC for welcoming them into Chiefs Kingdom. Minsky’s worked with Travis Kelce for several years to raise funds for Operation Breakthrough through sales of The Kelceroni, and with Drue’s history of community outreach, it was natural to reach out to Drue about working together when he arrived in KC a few years ago.
Drue Tranquill with the Minsky’s management team.
“Once Drue and his family learned more about Operation Breakthrough and the great work they do, they knew it was a perfect match. Thanks to Chiefs Kingdom and their appetite for The Tranquilo Crunch, Minsky’s has been able to again make a nice contribution. Drue and his family stepping up this year with a $32,000 donation was just unbelievably generous. And, thanks to another significant contribution from the Hunt Family Foundation, we’ve been able to raise far more than expected and help Drue create something really special at Operation Breakthrough with Zone 23.”
