“All that stuff you pictured as a kid and thought you could do, you were able to do it, even while all these people were doubting you and never believed in you. That’s humbleness and the sign of a person who understood where they wanted to go,” explained Bogues.

“When I was going through it people didn’t realize how tough it was. No one was really looking at little guards at the time and the game was changing from the late 70’s to the early 80’s, but I had to have strong skin and a tough mind because tough times don’t last, tough people do. I never gave up and I always pursued my dreams because I had confidence in myself and I cannot stress that enough, how important it is to just believe in yourself and not being afraid to fail.”

As someone who understands how important it is to have confidence in yourself, Bogues shares his message with today’s youth whenever he gets the chance.

“I always try to tell the kids that they’ve got to believe in themselves. I find so much as I go around that kids second-guess themselves. I tell them that as a kid I would visualize where I wanted to go and every time I would visualize where I wanted to go I would take that next step to try and get there,” said Bogues who sits 17^th on the NBA’s all-time career assists list.

“There are some folks that like to be dreamers and ones that do dreams. The dreamers are the ones that say what they want to do, but once you look up they aren’t doing anything in that direction to make that dream a reality. The ones that do dreams are the ones that take that next step to try to get to where they want to go. You might not always get exactly where you visualized, but those steps will set you up for success and on the same path in some form or fashion.”

Muggsy’s work ethic and confidence comes from positive role models. He has a passion for bettering the community and helping others, as well as enlightening our young people; all because of the influential people he had around him when he was growing up.

“My mom set the stage, she always thought about others first. There was also a gentleman by the name of Leon Howard who taught me how to be appreciative of others and not just yourself when I was growing up and when you understand that at an early age, for some reason you just grow up with that type of heart and passion to help others, you know, and a guy like myself, not having a lot of support from others, that made an impact on my life just knowing that someone believed in me,” explained the 6^th pick in the 1988 NBA Expansion Draft.

“They didn’t know where I was going to end up but they helped give me that confidence that I could do something positive with my life.”

In 2001, Muggsy’s mother passed away. At the time he was very involved in the community and was helping out whenever he could. He even started his own Foundation with the help from his mother, but found it hard to continue after she passed away.

“It kind of took some of my drive away and I wasn’t as involved as I should have been, but I recently just introduced it to the city of Charlotte, we’re going to do it this summer, we’re going to have a Muggsy Bogues Day and I’m going to get the chance to help kids with their self-esteem and show them how to enrich their character.”

He likes to help boost the kids’ self-esteem and confidence and shares with all of them the things he believes will lead them on to the path for a successful life.

“I explain to the kids that I speak to that they can be whatever they want to be, but first they have to have that solid foundation and believe in the Lord. They also have to believe in themselves because if they don’t have the confidence in themselves they’re going to continue to make negative choices in life and get involved with the bad things like drugs and become easily influenced when it comes to doing the wrong things,” he said.

“If you can give kids confidence at an early age then that is huge because you can help be a positive influence on them. I try to give them that positive message every time I talk to them and tell them that the longer they keep onto that positive message, the longer they will stay on that right path.”

As someone who overcame many adversities to get to where he is today, Bogues envisioned himself playing in the NBA when he was young and set goals to make that dream a reality. Being in the NBA got him into the spotlight and landed him a role in the movie Space Jam, alongside Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley, Shawn Bradley and Larry Johnson – and the Looney Tunes characters, of course.

“Oh man, it was such a blast,” he chuckled. “It was a dream that I never even thought I could accomplish. Something like basketball opened up my life to so many things. Being a kid, dreaming with that round ball, it just got me to so many places I never thought I would go,” he continued.

“Doing the Space Jam movie with characters like Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Bugs Bunny, it’s just an unbelievable feeling and it’s one of those movies that is going to be around even after we’re gone. We had the greatest basketball player in the world participating in it so to be a part of that I was just very thankful and very blessed.”

For more information on what Muggsy Bogues is up to, visit http://www.muggsybogues.com/

“I always thought of having a place to help the people and help the kids. Ever since I was 12-years-old I thought to myself, ‘I will read, I will grow and I will do something for the kids when I am older,’” said the Caracas, Venezuela native.

When she was young her parents instilled in her the importance of education. They taught her about the possibilities that education could bring her and that if she got one she would be able to do whatever she wanted in life because of it.

“The key thing in life is education. When you have education you have the greatest power in life and I teach the kids that if they have an education then they can do whatever they want,” said Duno. “Motivation is also important. I always tell the kids that we need them to get their education so they can do what they want when they are older.”

Duno goes to schools and companies to give motivational speeches and speaks to them about her life experiences and choices as part of her Milka Way program. She likes to give people an understanding of what they have to do to get to where they want to go and how important it is to take advantage of every opportunity that comes their way.

“I think it’s really important for me to speak to the kids because they see a woman who made it in a profession that isn’t a typical place for woman and at the same time they see someone who has an education. I can inspire them to work for everything that they want in life and show them that anything can happen,” said Duno, the first woman in history to win a major international race in the US.

Duno started the Milka Way program in 2004. Her mission through this program is to inspire children and students to aim for the stars and achieve academic excellence. As someone who is a qualified Naval Engineer with four master’s degrees – in Organizational Development, Naval Architecture, Aquaculture and Maritime Business; while earning the last three degrees simultaneously – Milka believes strongly in the value and importance of a strong academic background.

She was named an Es El Momento (The Moment is Now) Ambassador, in which she will be able to highlight the importance of children having role models in their lives, encourage parents to teach by example and instill in their children the importance of education and how it is the key to their success.

“As an Ambassador, I want the opportunity to talk with the kids and parents because I can tell them about my history and how hard my parents were working for me and my brothers to have an education,” explained Duno.

“The most important thing for my parents was for me to study, study, study, and I really appreciate that now because if I never studied everything that I did, I would not be here right now. They always told me that education is the most important thing to have and I appreciate that.”

She speaks to thousands of people year after year, hoping to motivate them any way that she can. She tells them about everything that she has been through and what she has been able to accomplish throughout her life, and hopes that they will take it all in and do something successful with theirs. She teaches them the importance of helping out in the community and helping others around them when they are in need and how to live up to their full potential.

“I tell everyone that I want to be an athlete that gives something more to the community, that goes forward with everything. I think that the young people of today have to know how to prepare because it will open the doors for them in the future. They have to help their community, their family and the world around them because with the contribution that everyone puts forward it can help change the world for the better.”

For more information on Milka Duno and the Milka Way program, visit http://milkaduno.com/index.php

Since joining the Steelers in 2010 the Las Vegas, Nevada native has been highly involved in various charitable causes in both Pittsburgh and Las Vegas.

“I do a variation of different things, a lot of the guys have different foundations and there’s a whole bunch of charity work in every city really, so I try to pick up as much as I can,” Stevenson said. “LaMarr Woodley has a lot of different events and charity stuff he always does so I end up helping him a lot because he’s a fellow linebacker and he does a lot of work with kids and does a bunch of other little things that help benefit others,” he added.

Though Sylvester doesn’t run or operate any charities of his own, he is constantly taking part in team initiatives and is a constant presence in the Pittsburgh community, especially around the holidays.

“I haven’t set up any charities or foundations yet so I try to stay busy with other stuff. Around Pittsburgh last year I did a lot of things around the holidays. At that time it picks up and they need a lot of help and being a professional athlete it attracts more attention, too, so it’s very beneficial for them,” Sly explained.

“I just try to help out; whether it’s me going in there and helping pass out food at Thanksgiving or Christmas or hanging out with the kids,” he continued. “We do artwork, things like making ornaments, stockings, caroling with the kids and fun things of that nature.”

Growing up in Las Vegas, Sylvester was never exposed to the opportunity of having athletes such as himself help out with charity causes within the city because they have never had a professional team of such magnitude. As of late, St. Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson, who is a Las Vegas native, has held a couple charity events in their hometown, which Sylvester says is a great opportunity for the residents’ youth.

“It was really cool of Steven to do that because it gave those kids a chance to see guys like us doing good things. If you get kids excited about things like that they stay out of trouble and they end up doing more of the right thing,” he said. “Especially in this world where a lot of things are going wrong you want to keep kids out of trouble as much as possible so you keep them busy, make sure that if they keep their grades right and do the right thing they can hang out with guys like us and for doing good we’ll take care of them,” elucidated the Steelers’ 5th round pick in 2010.

Sylvester credits his own childhood heroes to his current involvement with today’s youth and charity and says that the platform athletes such as himself are held on is so important in keeping guys in check and fulfilling their roles in the sports community.

“It always goes back to when I was a kid, I always looked up to professional athletes because it’s something I always wanted to be. I just thought they did everything the right way, you know. A lot of kids want to play sports, and so they look up to us a lot and we want to lead by example. We do that by showing them to do the right thing by helping out and being nice to people and showing them the right way to handle things and explain the little steps you took to be where you are,” he explained.

“I just try to influence the kids and show them that we’re just as human as everybody else and to go about things the right way,” added Sly.

Though professional athletes have a negative stigma given to them by many in the outside community, guys like Stevenson Sylvester provide a pretty good example of the realization that most athletes in his position are thankful and embrace the role associated with their line of work. Whether he is stepping onto the field for a game or practice, or if he is heading out onto the streets of Pittsburgh, Sylvester is proud to be a role model to so many young minds and does his best to fulfill his duties day after day.

“My favourite part is just seeing the smiles on the children’s faces just because I’m there. I’m not doing anything different from the teachers, councilors or hosts for the event, but just me being there keeps the kids on their best behavior and keeps things fun. I remember when I was younger how much better everything was when I was having fun and if I can make it fun for the kids by just being there and being an influence it means so much and that’s what I always try to do. Its crazy to think about how much your presence can affect someone,” stated the Las Vegas, Nevada native.

“I want to be remembered as a good role model and someone kids want to be like when they grow up. I don’t want people to be mean or disrespectful so by carrying yourself the right way and being a leader kids will see that and hopefully follow in our footsteps,” concluded Sylvester.

“It’s my first official basketball camp, it’s all girls and it focuses on how you can use basketball to take you to other places. I’m going to teach the girls about being disciplined, not just on the basketball court but in the classroom, and help them realize that education will take them a long way,” said Latta.

“Basketball or any other sport can only take you so far but if you have a great education you can continue to go as far as you can and that’s the main thing I want to emphasize at the camp. Hard work, determination, staying focused and being disciplined on and off the court,” she added.

Though the camp just began, the Tulsa Shock guard expects it to be a year round opportunity and hopes to take it to different parts of the United States.

“The way this is going I’m going to do this camp all year round. From November 24-25 I’m going to Houston, Texas, and from March 23-24 I’m taking it to Franklin, Tennessee, and I know the more this becomes successful more states want us to visit and hold the academy there,” explained the 2006 College Player of the Year.

Ivory says her love for children and lack of role models as a youth are both contributors to her desire to assist and lead today’s young female demographic.

“What motivated me to run this camp is my motivation to helping young girls. I can say young girls because that’s what my camp is right now, but I love helping young children, period. I definitely love children and I know I want to give back to the community because when I was growing up I never really had that role model I could look up to where as these days kids have a lot of role models,” elucidated Latta.

“I’m pretty well known in the Georgia area so I know these girls here that look up to me a lot and it was just something in my heart I really wanted to do to just teach them and hit them at an early age and get them on the right path and just show them you don’t have to be big to be successful,” she continued.

Aside from her involvement and creation of her basketball camp, Ivory is also involved in many other charitable causes. She works very closely with the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation promoting and raising awareness about the severity of Parkinson’s disease. The organization and awareness is also something very near and dear to Latta’s heart as her father has battled with the disease for 6 years now.

She has also been active with Habitat for Humanity by assisting in the construction of a home built for a single mother and her children in Atlanta, Georgia, and works with an organization called Cheer for Children based out of South Carolina, doing things like back to school giveaways, end of school activities and yearly children’s Christmas parties. She is also currently writing a children’s book.

“The children’s book I’m writing is called Despite the Height and it’s the small version of the bigger one to come. With all my accolades I’m only 5-foot-6 and I’ve accomplished so much. I’m excited for the kids to read it and hopefully become inspired from the things I’ve done and been through,” said Ivory.

Constantly keeping busy working to benefit others, Ivory Latta is a shining example of a truly genuine role model and to her, giving back to others is something she has always been inspired to do even if she wasn’t a pro basketball player.

“I always wanted to give back. Not having a role model contributed to that but I also look around and see a lot of things going on that shouldn’t be going on. I always look around and say what can I do to help make someone become better that day. Being in the community and doing charity work, it’s something I want to do and something I love doing and I’ll continue doing it for the rest of my life whether it’s small or big,” she explained.

“I always tell people that you don’t have to have a lot of money to change people’s lives, giving time to that person means more than pulling out a million dollars because you can never get time back.”

Though women’s professional sports have become more popular over the last decade or so, there is still a large shadow hovering over their accomplishments by the accolades and heroes of the men in the major North American leagues. As a woman, the importance of being a constant positive presence in society holds a special importance to athletes such as Ivory Latta, and it is being a woman that makes their work important for our female youth.

“It’s very important because to be honest were not as seen as much as the male players. It’s easy for young men to look at Kobe or LeBron because they’re always on TV and it’s really hard for a young women to look at a WNBA player or other female competitors because to be honest women are not seen as much and we do a lot of great things and that really bothers me because I’m really based on equal opportunities and we should have the same equal opportunities that the guys do,” stated Ivory.

“Young ladies will have the chance to look at us in a different way and I’m just going to continue to stay out there in the community, make sure that these young ladies finish on a strong path and that’s my goal, help them stay out of trouble, get good grades and an education. College was the best four years of my life but I can’t take that back or go back, I just have memories, so I want these young ladies today to get that experience because they will not get that chance back,” she concluded.

With female athletes such as Ivory, the presence of women in professional sports will only continue to grow and her lesson will continue to reach more and more young ladies in our growing society.

To learn more about Ivory’s work in the community and to learn about her camps, visit http://www.ivorylatta12.net/

To learn more about the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, visit http://www.pdf.org/

To learn more about Habitat for Humanity, visit http://www.habitat.org/

Throughout Mahbod’s career, starting from his time in the juniors up until today, he has made it a habit to visit various hockey camps and take the time to skate, teach and mentor the youngsters.

“I would always show up to summer camps to work with the kids, especially in the West Island where I’m from in Montreal. I work with all age groups but mainly younger kids ranging from 7-12. I share what I’ve learned, I’m not a superstar or anything, I played hockey for fun and now it has become a job and I’m really fortunate,” said Mahbod. “I just give back because when I was growing up I had other people come in and give their time for me and I’m very fortunate for that. I just want to do the same thing and pass along the experience and have fun,” he added.

As soon as he turned pro with the Cincinnati Cyclones Samson joined Hockey Players for Kids (HP4K). Through HP4K he would visit schools, participate in readings with the students and assisted with skating drills and the essentials within the game of hockey. Though he is no longer in Cincinnati, Mahbod continues to share his time and wisdom to the many young minds that may listen.

“This past summer I worked and trained with a lot of younger kids and on days off I’d go in and talk with the kids and sometimes get on the ice and do power skating drills with them and just have some fun. I talk about my past and what I’ve been through and how I started. I know a lot of kids in places like Montreal as they get older, especially the kids around 14 or 15, they have the huge dilemma when it comes to playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League or going to the NCAA. I let them know of the different options and I share my experiences with the kids,” Samson explained.

One unique aspect of the way Mahbod approaches his mentoring with the kids, especially the youngsters, is his emphasis to having fun and not worrying about the politics that can come with competitive hockey.

“When I talk to the younger kids I tell them this is the time to have fun, work hard and have fun. At the age of 12, that’s the most fun you’ll have playing hockey, there’s no pressure or anything. Later on if they want to take it seriously then I tell those kids they have to make sacrifices. Not going out on the weekend, staying in, stuff like that. After practice instead of going to the beach you go to the gym instead, it takes a lot of hard work,” he elucidated.

Mahbod draws his inspiration to give back through his experiences as a young hockey player and keeps his childhood mentality to have an effective and lasting impression on tomorrow’s stars.

“I was there you know. I was that kid and when I saw other people coming in I got excited and I know that feeling of someone older coming in to talk to them to share their experience. I just put myself in their position and think about how I would feel if I were there. Laughing. Skating around. Shooting pucks. I used to have a lot of fun with the older guys so I like sharing that experience and making it fun for them. I love being on the ice with the kids, seeing them skate and seeing them try to work hard and push themselves, I think it’s awesome to see the passion that some kids have.”

At a time where professional sports rely on so much more than just the game itself, it’s always refreshing to see athletes that still just enjoy the pleasure of the game and are reminded everyday of why they picked up the sport in the first place. The reminder that sports isn’t about cars, money or sharing revenues, sports are pleasures many take the time to enjoy, and they are teaching mechanisms that can be related to everyday life. As role models to today’s youth it is essential for athletes to exemplify the true joy and passion behind sports.

To learn more about Hockey Players For Kids (HP4K), visit http://hp4k.org/

The Miss Pink Pageant is an annual benefit event that celebrates the lives of breast cancer survivors. All contestants have or survived breast cancer and all proceeds go to the fight to end the deadly disease. Brace has served as a volunteer judge for the event; something he says is a pleasure to participate in.

“I had a few family members that had cancer and so I figured it would definitely be good to take on this experience and when I got there it was something else. You’re guaranteed to cry because the stories of these women are so touching and just to see their strength, it’s amazing. These women were given time frames to live and most of them make it to the pageant,” explained Brace.

“The winner from the first pageant I went to actually just passed away. When I saw her at the pageant she looked like a woman that was never told she would die. She lived her life to the fullest and really made me want to live my life and do more with it. Before, I would just do what the team would ask me to do but I have such a different outlook now. I did the Miss Pink Pageant again this year and I’ll do it until they ask me not to, and even then I’ll still be coming back just as a supporter.”

In 2011, Brace’s hometown of Springfield, Massachusetts was heavily devastated by a tornado that destroyed many homes and employment buildings, leaving many homeless and without jobs. Shortly after the tornado, Brace was on his way to a Patriots charity event in which he travelled through his old stomping grounds. The ride provided him with a first-hand look at the devastation and severity of what had happened, inspiring him to take action and restore what had been taken from so many people, including himself.

“The tornado tore down a lot of houses, a lot of people were without homes and jobs and I remember driving through there and thinking to myself that it was crazy. Seeing the wreckage of my childhood home made me tear up,” said Brace.

“My grandparents didn’t let me know, but my old house went up for auction and someone ended up buying it for dirt-cheap. If I had known I would’ve bought it just for the memories, the materials that reminded me of the past are all gone. My medals from high school and college, everything I had award-wise was in that house so I’m just going off of memories of all of that stuff,” he continued.

“I was going to a charity event for the Patriots to celebrate volunteers and we were giving out awards and I remember Mr. Kraft told me that he wanted to help out, I didn’t even have to say anything to him, he offered to help before I could even bring it up.”

By teaming up with United Way and with help from the Patriots, Brace helped raise over $200,000 in just over three weeks for the Springfield tornado victims. Ron also took part in the rebuilding process in a community initiative called Rebuild Together.

“We rebuilt a lady’s backyard who had damage from the tornadoes, so we did a lot of yard work and I learned how to build a fence during that event,” mentioned the defensive end out of Boston College. “We had a good turnout, a lot of volunteers. Just being able to help this woman was great and seeing all the people helping out was even better. It’s nice to see a town work to get better after a tornado set it back.”

Since his involvement with the tornado relief, Ron Brace has continued to visit Springfield on a regular basis to speak with the kids and provide guidance and leadership to the youth.

“I basically wanted to bring some things into the community because I know when I was there I never saw charity events or that many people reaching out. There were a few things from people within the town, but nothing really from outside the city. so it’s something to let these kids know that if I can do it, you can do it. It takes you buckling down and knowing what you have to do,” said Brace.

“What I tell the kids, especially the ones where I came from, I tell them I want them to be better than me because they can, it’s possible, you just have to put forth the effort,” he added.

Aside from taking time to speak with youth, Ron also helped out Jamie Silva at the Jamie Silva Football Camp, something Brace says he hopes to continue in the future.

“I helped out at Jamie Silva’s football camp for the first time this year and if he invites me again I’ll definitely be there because it was a blast talking with these kids and teaching them things I wish I knew. In Massachusetts there aren’t many good football coaches that really know how to teach the game, so I pass on any knowledge that I wish I had gotten at an early age to them, especially if it applies to what they’re doing. I teach them how to live healthier and the importance of gaining weight and size through proper weight lifting and diets,” he elucidated.

Throughout his road to the NFL many doubters stood in Brace’s path, but he never let them get the best of him. He used the non-believers as his motivation, and though he never had figures such as professional athletes speaking with and sharing their knowledge with him, Ron drew inspiration from his closest role model, his father.

“I had a bunch of good role models; my dad is a really good man and father because he let me know that if I wanted something I had to work for it. He helped me learn that if I wanted something I have to go get it and that’s what I teach these kids, that there are good role models out there but you have to pick the right ones.”

Ron Brace exemplifies a true, hard working, blue-collar professional. His honesty and passion for others makes the heart on his sleeve glow and the love for the people of his hometown can only be described as admirable. A player who understands the importance of opportunity and belief, his roots have kept him humble and always craving more, whether it be starting games with the Patriots or starting the young people of Springfield on the right path.

To learn more about the Miss Pink Pageant, visit http://www.misspinkpageant.com/

To learn more about the United Way, visit http://supportunitedway.org/

To learn more about what Rob Brace is doing within the community, visit his Facebook Fan Page

The 10-week mentoring program focuses on week-by-week different aspects such as leadership skills, building a vision for your life and goal setting.

“We do activities, handouts and we’ll give them an assignment. The next week we’ll go over the assignment and then do another theme, so we go theme by theme,” Hood explains. “At the end of the program we do a big group assignment and we let them choose their assignment. One school did a landscaping assignment, some schools like doing mentoring for the feeder elementary schools and the kids love it because it gives them a new perspective aside from what their teachers or parents may teach. The kids have a lot of fun and we have a lot of fun,” he continued.

“We do it because we understand that we had mentors when we were young and they helped a lot because they give you a different view point, they help you learn and it’s learning through a different means. Everybody goes to school and sometimes there’s a disconnect between the teachers and students because it’s tough to relate to some teachers. We just keep it real, be very relatable and we aren’t too far removed from high school so we’re cool with them and it’s a good opportunity for them to learn from someone else’s view point and to see things first hand, because if you’re in a tough situation it’s hard to see something better if you’re never introduced to it,” elucidated Hood.

Alongside his work in youth development, Hood and Tiger-Cats teammate Ryan Hinds, whom he is accompanied by for the mentoring program, also run football camps in Oakville, Ontario from January to April dating back to 2010 and are also joined by Edmonton Eskimos wide receiver Matt Carter.

“We do indoor camps, skills and drills, and the fundamentals of football twice a week. We have kids ages 9 to 18 and we do these camps to increase football development in Canada and give these kids a head start. The difference between Canada and the States is that we start much later and their coaching is better because there’s so many more of them,” Hood explains. “As a pro we can be great coaches because we know and live the game every day, so we coach these kids and give them the tools they need to be pros in the future or do whatever else they want to do because we add leadership skills in it as well.”

With friends and colleagues playing in all parts of Canada for every team in the CFL, Hood hopes to eventually take his camps and mentoring programs to nationwide statuses.

“With Matt (Carter) out there now he can test the market out west and see if the need is there and if everything we do can be transferred over there. I have different friends on different teams that I went to high school with and we have similar mindsets and we all had mentors at our schools, so if we could spread the programs nationally the sky’s the limit, we have a big vision,” said the former St. Francis Xavier and Western University star.

Like his commitment on the field and dedication to his teammates, Jonathan also takes part in almost every community initiative the Tiger-Cats promote and participate in.

“With the team we do a whole bunch of initiatives. One is called Be Fit, where we go to different schools and do a presentation about eating right and living a whole active life style. We do another one called Cops and Cats where we team up with the Hamilton Police and play basketball with the kids for cancer research, and we take part in Tim Horton’s Camp Day. The team is heavily involved in the community and I’m all about it so they call on me to do a lot of stuff with them,” said Hood.

While on his own, Hood doesn’t take any time off from speaking with youth and adults and dedicates almost every minute he has to motivating and inspiring the entire community.

“I speak on my own at schools, day camps, business lunches and events. My message is persistence and persisting until you succeed, how to reach your goals, having faith and just presenting a message that inspires people to do what they want to do because when you have a big goal or dream it always seems like there’s a whole lot of negatives and seems like the odds are against you, so when you can be uplifted and be given a little insight on the tools and things you can do to bring you closer to your goals it always drives you,” he elucidated.

“Giving back wasn’t something that I really thought about, it was something I always lived. In school I was always a leader and I’ve always been an influence, whether in my family with younger siblings or to kids in my school, I’ve always been looked up to because of the roles I played. They always say when you have great power you have great responsibility, so you know everybody has responsibility to not inspire others but to live by example, lead by example, so that’s what I do, I lead by example,” he explained.

“The things that I’ve received like mentoring and advice, I try to pass it on and pay it forward. I just try to be a positive impact on others and hopefully they’re a positive impact on somebody else. You never really know the reach of your actions so why not be the best you could be and just be on all the time.”

Hood’s energy on the field and support for his teammates hardly goes unnoticed. His energy and excitement for not his own big plays, but those made by the guys around him translates into his persona and actions to the people he works to educate, train and inspire. His love for football is matched for his love of positivity and sharing, an infectious combination for all the right reasons.

“I love playing ball, I love hanging out with kids, I love inspiring. I love hearing people’s stories of reaching their goals and fulfilling their dreams and it really energizes me.”

To learn more about Jonathan Hood and to find out more information about what he’s doing, visit http://jonathanhood.ca/football/

American sprinter and 2008 Olympic gold medalist Mary Wineberg is a hero for reasons far beyond her gold medal and many successes on the track. She is a sincere, active role model in her community and gives countless hours to improving lives of so many children in her hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio. Involved in programs such as Girls on the Run, as well as assisting at the University of Cincinnati and constant visits to children’s hospitals, Mary Wineberg is a perfect example of a true Olympic hero, something she has always strived to be.

“When I was in college we had a lot of different volunteer opportunities that the student athletes could do, so I just made sure that I was always involved in that. Giving back to organizations such as Habitat for Humanity and going to the different schools and speaking as a student and an athlete to all of the children just giving them hope of different things they can do when they get older and grow up,” Wineberg explained.

“Before I really got into my track career I used to be a teacher and I worked with inner city children. I thought that there was just a really large need for those particular individuals and children to just see a mentor and see someone doing something positive because those kids had a lot of issues in terms of the inner city with going to jail, stealing, selling drugs and things like that, so I’m a big advocate for children and really working with the children,” she said.

As she became fully involved with track and her career, Wineberg continued to serve children of the community and has been a constant supporter and familiar face with Girls on the Run where she teaches, motivates and encourages young girls to stay active and follow their dreams.

“I think I bring so much energy into the program that the girls just get super excited and I think that it helps that it’s a running event. The girls run 3 km so it’s a long distance race that they run. I’m a sprinter but I don’t mind cheering them on, it just brings tears to my eyes to see girls who have never done anything like this before and they train all year for this race and they are literally crying as they’re crossing the line and if I see someone that needs some motivation I’ll jump in the race and encourage them,” Mary elucidated.

“I’m a big advocate for Girls on the Run just to get girls to see that they can be empowered and that they can do something with themselves and that they don’t have to be ashamed of running and being out there trying to be like the boys,” she added.

Mary also helps out at her former school, the University of Cincinnati, and provides mentorship for the young athletes trying to juggle education, sports and their social lives. One way she teaches the young student athletes is having them attend the Girls on the Run events.

“I bring the students into the mix and I think it helps out too because these young girls at the event are able to see these young college girls really help out by painting faces, they help me with the stretches, we dance with the girls and really get them pumped up for the race, so I think it’s exciting for the girls I work with at UC to also give back and see that I’m giving back there and hopefully make it a tradition that gets passed on,” said Mary.

Alongside mentoring other young athletes and girls to be active within running, Mary also makes continual visits to children’s hospitals and runs after school programs once a month in which she speaks with the children about having goals and doing your best to reach your goals, regardless of what those around you think or say.

“It’s all about the youth actually writing goals down and trying to achieve them instead of just settling. I was always taught that you always go after whatever you want to do or be in life instead of listening to someone tell you what you can’t do,” Wineberg said.

“I’ll be doing some things at children’s hospital again and I enjoy doing that because you have these children who are sick with cancer or any other issues and they’re excited, they are happy, they have smiles on their faces and if they don’t, once they see the gold medal or see me then they start to smile and that really brings a tear to my eye,” explained Mary. “I could never complain about anything because if I were in their shoes what would I do? I’m so thankful for the opportunity to be helping and if I wasn’t and I was in their shoes I would want someone to do the same for me.”

Mary doesn’t plan on slowing down on the track or in the community and will continue to do so because in her words, “An Olympian isn’t just someone that walks around with a medal, it’s someone that actually does something in the community and can be looked up to.”

For more information on Mary Wineberg, visit http://marywineberg.com/

For more information on Girls on the Run, visit http://www.girlsontherun.org/

Nakia Sanford of the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury knows first hand the importance of a leader in a young minds development and has not forgotten the impact it has on a young, aspiring athlete. Ever since becoming a professional basketball player, Nakia has taken great pride and made it a priority to reach back to today’s youth and offer her wisdom and knowledge of what it takes to not only be a successful basketball player, but a successful human being and important part of society.

“I think it stems from when I was younger, I think about if I hadn’t found basketball I wonder what my life would’ve been like,” said Sanford. “If I didn’t have people that talked to me and mentored me I wonder about what decisions I might have made and how my life may have turned out.”

Nakia established the Betty Ann Robinson Foundation in honour of her late grandmother Betty Ann Robinson and her work and passion within the community. The B.A.R Foundation benefits from Nakia’s second project, Club 43, which connects Sanford’s basketball career with her involvement in educating youth in the community.

“I wanted to find a way to give back to other young girls who maybe face similar situations. Of course, not too much changes. Different things do but the things we go through as young adults don’t change too much and I wanted to make sure that I reached back,” stated the Lithonia, Georgia native. “There were people in my life when I was younger that reached back and helped me out and I wanted to do the same.”

Her community involvement for the most part includes educating young girls to do not just what’s right, but what’s best for them in the future as they become young women in the world.

“I think for the most part I feel like if you know better you do better, so I like to talk to young girls about making better decisions,” stated Sanford. “Sometimes all it takes is someone to say; ‘Hey, this is how you can handle this situation or this is how you can handle someone trying to get you to skip school’ and it ends up helping them out a lot. We want to help young girls deal with everyday things that they encounter.” she elucidated.

Nakia also works with other WNBA players such as Rebekkah Brunson and her 32 Foundation to help mentor young girls, as well as give them a chance to see a WNBA game live and speak with the players after the game. She also takes time while she’s playing overseas to speak with youth in the United States and answer whatever questions they may have.

“The summer is really short and then we go overseas to play basketball as well, but what I’ve started doing is videotaping different things,” she mentioned. “So for example, there was a teacher in California that I was working with and she had her class of 5^th graders write different questions and ask me different things while I was in Turkey. I videotaped the answers for those questions along with some of my teammates,” she explained.

Sanford also hosts an annual basketball camp that gives young female basketball players a chance to showcase their talents in front of scouts and current WNBA players.

“Our basketball camp is just girls and that’s because it’s a bit more focused and will be at a higher age group with the elite camp. I’ve been doing personal instructions since I was in college, even when I was at the University of Kansas, one of the things that I did was personal instructions during the summer, but most people can’t afford to have a professional come in to work with their children, it’s a very expensive thing,” she mentioned.

“I wanted to find a way to reach out to kids and give them something affordable and also give them a look at what it takes to be a professional first hand and just give them a little bit of a push so they can see how intense everything is, like the workouts and things of that nature,” she explained.

For many people who are not involved in competitive sports the overall consensus is that being a professional athlete is easy and nothing but fun. A key part of Sanford’s involvement is explaining the sacrifices and discipline it takes to be the very best at whatever it is you do.

“There’s nothing easy about what we do, we sacrifice time, we sacrifice time with family, we sacrifice social lives, we sacrifice our bodies. If it were easy everyone would be doing it,” she chuckled.

“We definitely cover the sacrifices it takes to be a professional and also what being a professional means even if you’re not an athlete, just being a professional person. Just making sure that you’re presentable when you go out, making sure you speak well and treat people with respect,” she concluded.

As a child we never forget the words of advice we hear from a figure we admire and respect. Nakia Sanford continues to serves as a positive role model on and off the court. Her commitment to educating young females and providing insight on how to become a respectable, successful adult will go a long way with the young minds she reaches.

To learn more about Nakia Sanford, Club 43 or the Betty Ann Robinson Foundation, visit these websites:

http://thebarfoundation.net/

http://club43.net/wordpress/

The United Athletes Foundation was established in 2008 with the hopes of improving the lives of both athletes and society in it’s entirety. With over 90 professional athletes from the NBA, WNBA, NFL, MLB and professional boxing involved, the United Athletes Foundation supports various causes in various parts of the world that assist and better many communities.

“Our overall goal in what we we’re trying to accomplish with the organization was basically uniting athletes around the world for the benefit of communities,” said Reggie.

“Rather than pick one cause to just go behind, we thought it was more important to put our organization in a position where it became an empowerment organization to basically put individual athletes into positions where they can become ambassadors of their cities and ambassadors of their causes, so that was the real vision of why we formed United Athletes Foundation, to simply unite athletes across the world,” he explained.

The United Athletes Foundation operates on three different levels of empowerment, which contribute to the stability of both athletes and the community. The Foundation hosts a number of financial literacy symposiums and programs across the United States to inform and educate athletes about the world of philanthropy and the importance of understanding all financial aspects of their personal lives, as well as their foundations and causes.

“We kept hearing the criticisms about athletes not really giving back and we knew that wasn’t a true statement, we knew athletes did care about giving back and we knew they did care about the community,” elucidated the former Memphis Tiger.

“The alarming statistics we saw were of NFL players and NBA players going bankrupt, unemployed and divorced very quickly after retirement. Whether it was after two years after being retired from the NFL or five years after being retired from the NBA, it just was an alarming statistic and because of that fact it was also causing their non-profits to go out of business because that one individual mainly funded them,” he continued.

“Once their income or financial situation started to deteriorate, so did the community effort they were trying to accomplish in their specific city. That’s where we really saw the value of bringing ourselves together and becoming an informational organization and more about empowering these individuals. We are behind the scenes helping them help their community.”

Aside from teaching athletes the importance of financial literacy, the Foundation is also heavily involved in promoting and expanding various foundations and programs into larger markets in larger communities to assist more people. Through strategic partnerships with athlete members of their organization and assisting in fundraising efforts and events, the UAF helps raise awareness and the effectiveness and efficiency of each program.

The United Athletes Foundation is also heavily involved with children’s relief and has partnerships with both St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the Gates Millennium Scholars Program.

“We’ve been focused on St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital by helping them create more awareness and help push their cause to the community. We also work with the Gates Millennium Scholars Program, which is the 10-year scholarship program that’s administered by the United Negro College Fund,” explained the President and Executive Director of the United Athletes Foundation.

“With what we’ve been doing with financial literacy it kind of got us in a position where one of our financial literacy partners introduced us to a company that was doing housing rehab so we announced in New York that we’ll be partnering with another organization in partnership with our financial literacy partner to do rehab work in Atlanta, Baltimore and New Orleans,” added the Memphis, Tennessee native.

The United Athletes Foundation is one of a kind and gives numerous athletes the ability to give back to their communities in support of any cause they hope to support. Names like Julius Erving, Hank Aaron and music mogul Russell Simmons, are all involved with the Foundation and have created positive impacts on many others. Many athletes and individuals in the spotlight are misunderstood and can be easily taken advantage of. The ideals of Reggie Howard, Ray Lewis and many others, have given these athletes the chance to give back while gaining the proper knowledge and skill set to do so.

“I think there needs to be a source guys can go to and feel comfortable and just know there’s an organization that truly cares about athletes helping athletes. There’s no conflict with our organization being run by another company or anything from that standpoint,” says the former Carolina Panther. “We’re a freestanding organization that truly has the goal of helping these athletes accomplish what they want to do in their community.”

“You want to train the people that have the best opportunity to help others and if we can help the youth as early as possible so we don’t have to go through a brainwashing process or educating them after they’ve lost everything, the real goal is catching them before they get the opportunity to come into substantial wealth so we can give them a blue print and pattern of understanding how to get the goal done the right way,” concluded Howard.

To learn more about the United Athletes Foundation, visit http://www.unitedathletesfoundation.org/