‘Changing their lives’: Former Eastern Washington wide receiver Kendrick Bourne surprises parents with dream home

Former Eastern Washington wide receiver Kendrick Bourne has realized a lot of dreams since he left Cheney the spring of 2017.

He’s played in the Super Bowl and he’s in the middle of a three-year contract with the New England Patriots that will pay him $15 million, with almost half of it guaranteed.

That money allowed Bourne to realize an even bigger dream: He bought his parents a new home.

And he did with style, on Easter Sunday back in his home town of Portland, Oregon.

In a video Bourne shared on YouTube, he greeted his parents, Linda and Eric Turner, as they were about to tour a luxury home they were interested in buying.

Little did they know Bourne had already paid for it – a secret that wasn’t let out of the bag until the end of the tour.

“I love you guys so much,” Bourne said in the video after giving his mother a new “Home Sweet Home” door mat.

“I love all my family members,” Bourne said. “Everybody here right now has been a part of my life, my whole life obviously, but this is something that I’ve been dreaming of doing,” Bourne said.

The home is a dream in itself.

It has a basketball court, splendid views from the backyard and a home gym that includes a sauna and steam room.

Bourne didn’t disclose the price.

“I feel like the house is overpriced, honestly, but it’s not about what I want,” Bourne said. “It’s about what they want and making them happy, man.

“Changing their lives,” Bourne said.

It’s already been a life-changing year for Bourne. A free agent after the 2020 season, he signed with the Patriots in March of 2021.

The 26-year-old Bourne backed that up by posting the best season of his five-year career, with career highs in receptions (55) and receiving yards (800).

Catching passes on the field and lifting the team emotionally, Bourne helped the Patriots recover from a 2-4 start after the departure of quarterback Tom Brady.

Even Coach Bill Belichick noticed.

“Yeah, he brings that (energy) out to the practice field every day,” Belichick said during the season, which saw the Patriots recover to make the playoffs.

“It’s fun to have that type of personality and energy interjected into the team,” Belichick said.

Bourne’s success is no surprise to fans at Eastern, where he teamed up with Cooper Kupp in one of the most prolific passing games in FCS history.

For his collegiate career, Bourne caught 211 balls for 3,130 yards and 27 touchdowns. He also caught the attention of some NFL scouts after catching 79 passes for 1,201 yards as a senior.

That was enough to earn a free-agent contract with the San Francisco 49ers, though with a guarantee of only $25,000.

But it was the start of a dream, one that Bourne says began at home.

“Shoutout to my mom. Shoutout to everybody. Shoutout to my family for all the support,” Bourne said.