CHARITY FOCUS: Athletes and their Foundations

                                            

Sportunes has dedicated Sundays to those athletes that have been able to offer support to the betterment of the human race. Last week we doffed our hats to Warrick Dunn who has provided opportunities for economically-disadvantaged single parents and children who have demonstrated a commitment to achieving financial independence and stability through home ownership (HERE)... This week our charitable Athlete goes to Dikembe Mutombo.

Dikembe Mutombo

                                    

Dikembe Mutombo is a Congolese American retired professional basketball player who last played for the Houston Rockets of the NBA. The 7 ft 2 in player is commonly referred to as one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players of all time, winning the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award four times. He was also an eight-time All-Star. In 2007, he surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the league's second most prolific shot blocker, in terms of career blocked shots in NBA history, behind only Nigerian Hakeem Olajuwon. In the second game of the first round of the 2009 NBA playoffs, Mutombo suffered a knee injury that kept him out for the remainder of the postseason. Soon after the injury, Mutombo announced he had played his last game in the NBA.

Outside basketball, Mutombo is best known for his humanitarian work. Mutombo started the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation to improve living conditions in his native Democratic Republic of Congo in 1997.

MISSION STATEMENT OF THE FOUNDATION

'The Dikembe Mutombo Foundation is dedicated to improving the health, education and quality of life for the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Foundation strives to accomplish this goal through an emphasis on primary health care and disease prevention, the promotion of health policy, health research and increased access to health care education for the people of the Congo.'

                                 

The 47 year old says his aspirations have always been focused on improving the living conditions and well being of the Congolese population. On September 15, 2001, his dream became a reality as he witnessed the historic groundbreaking of the Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital and Research Center, a new 10-acre, 300–bed facility dedicated to the memory of his beloved mother. When it opened in 2007, the $29 million facility became the first modern medical facility to be built in Congo capital city of Kinshasha in nearly 40 years.



In 2004, he participated in the Basketball Without Borders NBA program, where NBA stars like Shawn Bradley, Malik Rose and DeSagana Diop toured Africa to spread the word about basketball and to improve the infrastructure. 

He paid for uniforms and expenses for the Zaire women's basketball team during the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta. Mutombo is a spokesman for the international relief agency, CARE and is the first Youth Emissary for the United Nations Development Program. He has been a Global Ambassador for Special Olympics.

Last year, the Mutombo Foundation, in partnership with Mutombo's alma mater, Georgetown University, began a new initiative which aims to provide care for visually impaired children from low-income families in the Washington, D.C. region.

                         

It's always nice when you can point to a "pro athlete does good" story. And when the President of the United States helps to honor your humanitarian achievements, you've clearly done plenty of good.

Obama said the 18-year NBA veteran was attacking problems in Africa in "with the same ferocity with which he used to block shots in the NBA."

It's not the first time a president has honored the renowned shot blocker. President George W. Bush singled him out during the 2007 State of the Union address for his accomplishments and was referred to as a "son of the Congo" by the President in his speech.