Just Cause The Magazine – Just People: Jalen Rose
November 20, 2009
It’s been said that holidays are all about the kids. We agree with that. Not only is it fun to watch them open gifts, but it is a chance to teach them about giving, and the values we want them to embrace as adults.
That’s why we love Jalen Rose and Bobby Jackson! They are two JUST People who were raised with “giving back” as a family value and are now dedicating their lives to helping kids.
JALEN ROSE made a name for himself in the NBA, as a leading scorer and driving force behind the success of several NBA teams. However, it wasn’t until he retired that we really fell for him. Check out these stats:
*Jalen Rose Foundation named one of Top 26 Sports Foundation, Overtime Magazine, Summer 2006
*Jalen Rose names by Black Enterprise in 2005 as a Leader in Philanthropy
*Community MVP for Toronto Raptors April 2004
*The Professional Basketball Writers Association presented the annual Magic Johnson Award to Jalen Rose in 2003
*NBA Community Assist Award Presented to Jalen Rose 2003
Yeah, he can score on the court, but he really scores at creating community support for the causes that matter to him.
“Philanthropy starts in the heart, its not something that comes with status or money or career choices,” Jalen explained to us. “Ultimately, it’s the opportunity to touch other people in a positive way. That’s my sole goal and purpose – to give inspiration to people who may feel hopeless.”
Ultimately, he thinks that education can provide both the hope and the foundation for a future, so the Jalen Rose Foundation provides college scholarships to high-school seniors from Detroit, his home town.
“Education is the key to life,” he believes. “You have to compete with so many people, you can’t do that with just a high school diploma. You need to go to the next level to have those limitless possibilities.”
But to Jalen, it’s about more than the money and scholarships, it’s about decency and compassion.
“I want people to understand that giving is not just about money, its helping an old lady across the street, being kind, having manners. It’s humility, it’s humanitarian, and it trickles down.”
SCORE! (We can all join his team – help us raise money to help him help kids!) Now you can help them!
For every gift that YOU buy in the Just Cause Store at WorldOfGood.com, JUST CAUSE gets $5. That may not sound like much to you, but it helps us raise the money we need to keep producing JUST CAUSE and allows us to make generous donations to the causes we support – like Jalen and Bobby.
Got it? YOU give a gift, WE give a future! (with more than 28,000 great gifts, we’re pretty certain that we can change lives, and make some happy holidays!)
To read this entire article, visit: http://www.zinio.com/reader.jsp?issue=416106963&o=ext
