Sports world energizes relief efforts. See who’s giving, getting a helping hand.
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Bringing the Fight
Get to know some of the heroes among us leading the effort to combat COVID-19 in a special section published by the Lexington Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com. Read about them in the May 3, 2020, edition of the newspaper or click below to read the stories published online so far.
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The practice of hand washing, social distancing and self-quarantining has gone viral, so to speak. But as unnerving as the ongoing coronavirus pandemic may seem, it also sets the stage for inspiration.
The sports world has breathed life into something Winston Churchill once said: “The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”
Those volunteering in relief efforts include University of Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari. His aim to provide food to families in Fayette County has expanded nationwide. This follows his fundraisers for victims of an earthquake in Haiti in 2010 and flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey in Houston in 2017.
Jude Thompson, the president and CEO of CustMbite and Dental Delta of Kentucky, gave Calipari’s effort to provide food and other groceries a major boost when he recently donated $1 million to the cause. He seemed like a good person to ask what motivates the UK coach to try to help.
“I think it’s just his fiber, his DNA, his heart,” Thompson said. “He looks to help people that are the underdog.”
Thompson also described Calipari as “restless” and “tireless.”
Using UK pulpit
The UK coach began the John Calipari Basketball Fantasy Camp nine years ago as a fund-raiser for such charities as Samaritan’s Feet and Urban League of Lexington-Fayette County.
Thompson recalled meeting with Calipari a few days after UK hired him as coach in the spring of 2009.
“We do hi-hi and all that, and I ask him, ‘Are you ready for this coming from Memphis?’” Thompson recalled.
Calipari immediately said that he wanted to leverage his 100,000 Twitter followers into a fund-raising effort for UK Kentucky Children’s Hospital. Thompson, who then was an executive with Papa John’s Pizza, said he would donate $1 from every $10.99 pizza bought online.
“I truly said, I’ll see him in a year and I’ll cut him a check for $50,000,” Thompson said. It took only nine weeks to get to $50,000. Such was the power of the UK basketball coach’s pulpit, which Calipari from the beginning has seemed eager to use, Thompson said.
Calipari drew further inspiration from Larry Connor, the managing partner of The Connor Group, a Dayton-based real estate investment firm with assets totaling $2.5 billion. Calipari met Connor when Connor’s son, Shane, participated in the Basketball Fantasy Camp. The Connor Group has supported the Dayton Early College Academy for 10 years. That support includes providing food for about 40 percent of the 1,350 students, Conner said. When DECA closed because of the pandemic, Connor said his company bought Wifi service for homes so needy students could participate in online instruction.
Gregg Darbyshire, the founder/owner of ProCamps, which runs Calipari’s Fantasy Camp, said Connor was “a real inspiration to Coach to, hey, let’s take this to a bigger level.”
When asked why Calipari gets involved in charitable efforts, Connor said, “I would guess his motivation is the same as mine. We’ve both been fortunate in life. But we don’t take that for granted.
“And I believe we have an opportunity and also the obligation to give a helping hand to other people.”
Coffee with Cal
The coronavirus pandemic did not decrease the Fantasy Camp’s charitable reach. Instead, it inspired the “Coffee with Cal” Facebook show. The show will run for 20 Mondays with its conclusion leading into this year’s Fantasy Camp scheduled for late August. Such charities as No Kid Hungry, World Central Kitchen, Blessings in a Backpack and Feeding America are among the beneficiaries.
Expectations for “Coffee with Cal” exploded with the first guest, Dallas Mavericks’ owner Mark Cuban. That April 13 show has drawn more than two million views, said Matt Chacksfield, the vice president of sales and marketing at ProCamps. With the $1 million donation from CustMbite and Delta Dental, “we’re now taking this nationally,” Chacksfield said.
Higher viewership translates into more donations and sponsorships, he said.
Calipari’s second guest, on April 20, was former president Bill Clinton, and was followed on April 27 by basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley.
Chacksfield declined to identify future guests, but he said an appearance by Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the national institute of allergy and infectious diseases since 1984, is “definitely on the table.”
Then, Chacksfield added, “We’ve got another former president potentially on the table.” There’s also hope of having “some major, major NBA stars” on the show, he said. “And when I say major, I mean major NBA stars.”
However advantageous star power might be in terms of fundraising, Calipari has suggested that money is not the sole objective.
“I want all these talks to create hope,” he said earlier this spring, “to have an uplifting way.”
The Fayette County Public School system began a food backpack program about five years ago, said Doug Adams, the director of student support. In that time, participation has grown from two schools to all schools in Fayette County, he said, adding that this year has seen the number of backpacks provided grow from about 2,200 to about 3,200. The program distributes backpacks every Tuesday.
The Calipari Foundation stepped in when social distancing and sheltering at home caused by the coronavirus pandemic significantly impacted participation by the schools’ community partners, Adams said.
The UK coach’s foundation provided 400 Kroger gift cards worth $100 each to families. One week saw 600 cards distributed, Adams said, adding that Calipari has also helped in the delivery of groceries.
UK women’s basketball coach Matthew Mitchell is part of the effort. The Jenna and Matthew Mitchell Foundation has helped families pay the cost of utilities, while Calipari’s foundation has provided food, cleaning supplies and toiletries to families of public school students.
Calipari can only help elementary school students. “He can’t do middle or high school because of NCAA rules,” Adams said.
“It’s made a world of difference for our families. … ,” Adams added. “It’s been an incredible opportunity for us, an incredible partnership.”
Other efforts
The Jenna and Matthew Mitchell Foundation has also donated $25,000 to the UK Student Emergency Relief Fund, $132,000 to the Fayette County Public Schools and $45,000 to the Coronavirus Response Fund set up by the Blue Grass Community Foundation and United Way of The Bluegrass.
UK football coach Mark Stoops and his wife, Chantel, have donated personally to several groups and relief funds, including The Team Kentucky Fund, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the Kentucky Children’s Hospital for staff meals as well as for the COVID-19 Relief UK Health Crisis Need.
The UK Athletics Department worked with UK HealthCare in converting the Nutter Field House from an indoor football training center into a field house. The conversion was completed April 20 with 400 beds in place on 125,000 square feet of flooring laid over the synthetic turf.
“Our hope is that the space is never needed,” UK Director of Athletics Mitch Barnhart said in a news release. “But we are proud to do whatever we can to help.”
On April 14, former UK player Rajon Rondo bought groceries and provided gift cards for dozens of senior citizens in Louisville, WDRB.com reported.
Former UK basketball star Rex Chapman was among the first to act, launching a COVID-19 relief fund through his Twitter account, which has nearly 700,000 followers.
During an April 16 news conference, Louisville basketball coach Chris Mack said his program was considering playing a game for charity. “If the NCAA were to allow that,” he said.
Former UK point guard De’Aaron Fox joined Sacramento Kings teammates Harrison Barnes, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Richaun Holmes and Cory Joseph in donating 1,250 meals in the Sacramento area, according to a release from the NBA team.
Michael Jordan announced that he will donate proceeds from “The Last Dance” documentary televised by ESPN. Those proceeds have been estimated to be $3 or $4 million.
Churchill Downs in Louisville planned to conduct a virtual Kentucky Derby celebration on social media on the day the Run for the Roses was originally scheduled. The track sought charitable donations from racing fans and pledged to match up to $1 million of donations with funds to be directed to the Team Kentucky Fund and Direct Relief.
The Lexington Legends banded together with two other minor league baseball franchise in Kentucky, the Bowling Green Hot Rods and the Louisville Bats, to form a “Team Kentucky” campaign to benefit charities in each of the three cities.
Efforts elsewhere in the Southeastern Conference include:
▪ LSU converting its basketball arena, the Pete Maravich Assembly Center, into a place where there can be large-scale production of personal protective equipment (PPE).
▪ Former Florida standout Al Horford contributing $500,000 for COVID-19 relief in his native Dominican Republic, plus all the places that have been his basketball homes: Michigan (high school), Gainesville (college), Atlanta (Hawks), Boston (Celtics) and Philadelphia (76ers).
▪ Auburn coaches Bruce Pearl (basketball), Guz Malzahn (football) and Butch Thompson (baseball) joined former Tigers athletes Tim Hudson (baseball) and Jason Dufner (golf) in donating 60,000 pounds of food to families near campus.
▪ Former Mississippi State football player Darryl Williams distributed boxed lunches and other food to children in need in his hometown of Bessemer, Ala. His effort was part of a non-profit foundation formed by his aunt called Through Latch and Live.
▪ Arkansas fans donated more than $311,000 to an effort to support Razorbacks athletes and employees who are part of game-day working staff and/or hourly employees of the athletic department. Nearly 31 percent of all ticket holders chose to donate all or a part of their ticket refunds from the remainder of canceled 2019-20 seasons, the school said.
This story was originally published May 4, 2020 at 7:20 AM.
