Justin Kline encourages local athletes to get involved in philanthropy.
Last week’s Athlete of the Week interview with Strawberry Crest basketball player Briana Trigg went somewhere I didn’t expect.
Normally, when I ask athletes what they would do with $1 billion, I hear about fast cars, big homes or other material goods. I can’t say I wouldn’t have a similar answer, if asked. There are some that also say they’d donate some money to charity, and leave it at that. But Trigg, after some thought, decided that she would use money to help a specific cause.
Readers will likely remember that she said she would start her own charity to raise awareness for and fight bone cancer, as one of her AAU coaches is fighting the disease. As far as I can remember, it’s the first time any Athlete of the Week selection has told me they would go to that length in a “give to charity” answer and, for that, I salute Trigg.
I suppose it shouldn’t be surprising that a Strawberry Crest basketball player said it. A few years ago, the Lady Chargers had a player named Aliyah Gregory who did, in fact, start her own fundraising effort. Her “Assist and Score” campaign raised money to help victims of domestic violence, raising $1 for every point Gregory scored. It was created in memory of her aunt, Nicole Bush, who herself was a victim of domestic violence. I remember Gregory’s campaign being a success beyond the fundraising efforts, starting conversations around the area and getting the student body energized to show support.
I also connected with Trigg’s answer on a personal level, as my mother had the disease before I was born and died when I was too young to remember much about her myself. Based on some stories I’ve heard, it’s not something I’d wish on my worst enemy.
Right now, I’m here to let our area athletes know that you don’t need to have $1 billion in the bank to start making a difference.
Nothing brings people together quite like team sports, especially around here, and setting up a fundraising event can sometimes be easy. In college, I helped with several fundraisers for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, including volleyball tournaments that brought in a lot of people from within and around Florida Gulf Coast University. Sometimes, all it takes to make something happen are a few phone calls and a little bit of time.
Of course, you shouldn’t just latch onto a cause just to say you did. I’m not here to try and force anyone to do anything they don’t want to do. But it’s true in all areas of life that, when you find something you’re passionate about, going all-in is enjoyable. This is no exception. Heck, getting involved may teach you something about yourself that you never knew before.
And the nice thing is, your cause can be whatever you want it to be. There are plenty of local organizations that are trying to help people and communities in different ways, and are looking for any kind of help they can get. Whether your goal is to help ill patients, victims of violence, homeless people and animals or whatever you feel strongly about, you can make a difference.
So I salute athletes such as Gregory who are up for the challenge of taking action, and athletes such as Trigg who already know what causes they would help if able. The more athletes — and people — like that we have, the better off our communities are.
