Continuing with my theme of “Hey, here’s some good news, let’s talk about this!” that started with Andre Johnson’s incredibly kind effort and continued with Chris Paul’s equally generous charitable act, sports teams in every league except the one with a commissioner who is ruining Canada’s Christmas have been pitching in to help kids in their communities. Earlier this week, for instance, Orlando Magic players Jameer Nelson, JJ Redick and Glen Davis each held separate events for local kids, and the Charlotte Bobcats even took time away from not being in last place to give a little back.
As part of their Cats Care program, the entire Bobcats team gave 40 kids from the Salvation Army Center of Hope Women’s and Children’s Shelter, Hope Haven and Church of God Children’s Home of North Carolina their own $150 gift cards to run around Target and pick out toys for themselves and presents for their families. As in most cases like this, it meant as much to the players as it did to the kids.
Ramon Sessions put it all in perspective for how exciting it is for young kids to be able to meet their role models. He said “Me, being from South Carolina and not having an NBA team there, if I could’ve had something like this happen to me it would have meant the world to me and I know it means the world to those kids. It’s just a blessing to come and do this.”
When asked about the importance of being involved in the local community and interacting with the children, Kemba Walker said, “I don’t think a lot of these kids expect us to be as down to earth as we are. It’s just a great environment. It humbles us, puts everything in perspective and it’s just fun.” (Via NBA.com)
Again, I’m a sucker for stories like this because it’s nice to see these athletes, who in a lot of cases are still just kids themselves, be humbled and appreciative of what they have.
Additionally, it’s the only way I find out about other events like the Charlotte LadyCats dressing up for Christmas, and I think they should be celebrated as well, because the world could end tomorrow and we all deserve a little holiday cheer in that case.
(Images via Bobcats.com)
