Bobcats Celebrate Random Acts Of Kindness Day

Bobcats players, coaches and mascot Rufus Lynx celebrated Random Acts of Kindness Day on Tuesday with visits to two local schools, a fire station and the Morrocroft Harris Teeter location to show appreciation to the Charlotte community for their support.

The day began with a visit by Keith Bogans, Steve Smith and Theron Smith and assistant coaches Gary Kloppenburg and John Outlaw to West Mecklenburg High School. Steve Smith thanked the teachers and administrators for their dedication to the youth of Charlotte. The players and coaches then signed autographs for everyone and refreshments and game tickets were provided for those in attendance.

At Marie G. Davis Elementary School, Jason Hart and Bernard Robinson and assistant coaches Jeff Capel and Gary Brokaw visited with the school’s teachers and administrators. Capel and Brokaw, both of whose wives are teachers, thanked the group for the job that they do on a daily basis. Hart then spoke about the impact that teachers had on him growing up and thanked them for helping shape today’s youth.

“I think you guys are probably the most special to me because of the sacrifice that you make day in and day out,” Hart told the teachers. “You guys are wonderful people because you do something straight from your heart. You’re not worrying about accolades. I just wanted to truly say thank you because you guys are the ones who shape our community.”

Teacher Jonathon Robinson was impressed that the Bobcats took the time to acknowledge the job that educators do on a daily basis.

“It means that they are aware of where their basic fundamentals came from, which is their school upbringing,” said Robinson. “They are actually recognizing us and acknowledging that without us teaching and guiding them that they may not have been able to achieve their dreams. It’s awesome that they actually include us like that because not many people do.”

Random Acts of Kindness Day continued with Kareem Rush, Tamar Slay, Gerald Wallace, Jahidi White, assistant coach John-Blair Bickerstaff and mascot Rufus Lynx visiting McDowell Fire Station to serve dinner to firefighters.

The group quickly bonded as Rufus climbed the ladder on the fire truck and everyone posed for pictures and played pool and foosball. Dinner from Maggiano’s was then served with the players and firefighters showing extreme interest in the other’s profession as they enjoyed the food.

“Their hours are definitely longer,” said Slay. “We play a two-hour game and then travel and we might get in late, but we do get to rest. These guys are on call 24 hours a day and they sometimes live off of naps. I have a new respect for them. You don’t really understand what they do until you sit down and ask them about their job and really learn how many hours they work.”

Chief Lee Belton of Fire Station #1 enjoyed having the Bobcats in the station.

“It’s great,” said Belton. “ We see them on TV and we get to watch them play, but it’s nice to be able to sit and enjoy them in person and have real conversations with the players. We all have enjoyed getting to know each other.”

The Bobcats concluded the day with a visit to the Morrocroft Harris Teeter, where Primoz Brezec, Melvin Ely, Jason Kapono, Brevin Knight, Emeka Okafor, Head Coach and GM Bernie Bickerstaff and mascot Rufus Lynx greeted customers, bagged groceries, signed autographs and gave away Bobcats merchandise.

Courtney Scott, shopping with her two young children, received quite a surprise when Rufus stepped up and paid her grocery bill.

She summed up the day’s events nicely when asked if she was surprised by the gesture.

“Absolutely, what a nice treat,” said Scott. “It’s incredible.”