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Most charitable athlete?

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by tommyp, Nov 2, 2006.

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  1. tommyp

    tommyp Member

    Just a question to all: who is the most charitable athlete you have covered or read about?

    What inspired this topic was the si.com piece on Pat LaFontaine. Nice story.

    http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/brian_cazeneuve/11/01/lafontaine.ironman/index.html
     
    tommyp, Nov 2, 2006
    #1
  2. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    I have always been impressed by Derrick Brooks, the Bucs linebacker. He didn't just set up a foundation for a tax break and he doesn't just give money to his causes--although he does donate a lot of money. He is involved in a variety of kids' causes, in which he actually gets involved in the kids' lives. He does too many things to list, but he has created educational programs for underprivileged kids in Tampa, and he has a group called the "Brooks Bunch," in which he does some amazing things. Every summer, he takes 20 to 40 of the kids on an educational trip-- he personally chaperones them. One year, it was a 12-day trip to Africa. Another year, it was a tour of the western U.S. One year, he did a trip to D.C. Another year, he took the kids on a tour of colleges that covered NY, Chicago, Atlanta and Florida. These are mostly kids who have never been out of their tiny corner of Tampa. In order to participate, the kids have to attend an after-school class that he has someone run at the Boys & Girls Club, in which they learn how to prepare for college, they have to maintain a certain grade point average and they have to stay out of trouble. If you talk to him about it, I believe he is genuine in his belief that education is a way out for the kids. He says that when he went to Florida State, because of his mom's influence, he wasn't thinking about the NFL (he didn't know if he was good enough), as much as he was thinking about using the athletic scholarship to get his degree (and he was an Academic All American).

    \As you can tell, I think the guy is genuine and the real deal.
     
    The Big Ragu, Nov 2, 2006
    #2
  3. PeteyPirate

    PeteyPirate Guest

    Warrick Dunn is the real deal, too. I think his thing is buying houses for single mothers.
     
    PeteyPirate, Nov 2, 2006
    #3
  4. JR

    JR Well-Known Member

    JR, Nov 2, 2006
    #4
  5. Double Down

    Double Down Well-Known Member

    Pretty sure it's Agassi, and it's not even really close. Certainly not if we're talking about percentage of his own money used for charitable works.
     
    Double Down, Nov 2, 2006
    #5
  6. Lugnuts

    Lugnuts Well-Known Member

    He's really good at fundraising. I read that the Falcons gave more to Katrina victims than any professional sports team, including the Saints. That's because Dunn got his teammates and the owner to put up big bucks.

    ---------------

    On the other end of the spectrum, the week of Katrina, Tiger Woods said something like, "You wish there was something you could do, but you can't."

    ::)
     
    Lugnuts, Nov 2, 2006
    #6
  7. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    Beat me to it... Of all the stories I've heard, I was most impressed by his...
     
    Mizzougrad96, Nov 2, 2006
    #7
  8. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    Agassi has done tremendous work as well... It's actually his money too... He split with Nike because adidas agreed to be more supportive of his charities...
     
    Mizzougrad96, Nov 2, 2006
    #8
  9. Ledbetter

    Ledbetter Active Member

    I think Agassi and Dunn lead the way, though I'm sure there are plenty who quietly do great things.
     
    Ledbetter, Nov 2, 2006
    #9
  10. tommyp

    tommyp Member

    I remember reading about Brooks, Agassi's school and fight against breast cancer, and Dunn's single-parent philanthropy, in addition to Tiger's educational project and Jeter's Turn 2 foundation (to name a couple more). Would love to see the topic covered more.
     
    tommyp, Nov 2, 2006
    #10
  11. KJIM

    KJIM Well-Known Member

    I would, too, but every time I suggest it, I get shot down with "but there's lots of stuff like that out there and it's not news."

    I suppose it's a valid point, but it makes me feel like a weasel.

    If Joe Pro gets nailed for driving while impaired, that hits the papers, but if he contributes a million to establish a foundation to send kids to school, I'm basically told, so what, it's so little in compared to what they make it's not worth writing about. Tell that to the kid who goes to school on the scholarship endowed by Joe Pro.
     
    KJIM, Nov 2, 2006
    #11
  12. tommyp

    tommyp Member

    Check out my last post...my built-in "breast cancer" link is pink. As much as I abhor advertising, that's pretty cool.
     
    tommyp, Nov 2, 2006
    #12
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