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Santa Cuz Spreads Holiday Cheer in NYC

By Emily Mann

Thanks to DeMarcus Cousins, a local Sacramento family and five underprivileged children in New York were treated to an early Christmas gift.

Mari Hill and her son, Marion, were given the opportunity of a lifetime during an event at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Sacramento. On Wednesday, Nov. 30, they were presented with an all-expense paid trip to New York City that included a shopping spree at the NBA Team Store and a chance to watch the Kings play the Knicks.

“This means so much to me—to see the look of excitement and shock on Marion’s face, there’s nothing better,” Mari exclaimed with emotion. “It’s moments like these that keep us moving forward.”

Her son expressed an equal amount of gratitude for the opportunity. Marion called the chance to visit the Big Apple “unbelievable”.

“Madison Square Garden… I’m going to have to take pictures!” Marion said with a big smile.

Life hasn’t been very easy for the mother and son. Throughout times in her life, Mari has battled addiction while she and Marion have suffered through homelessness, struggling to make ends meet. But luckily, she found hope and help. She sought refuge at a local family shelter and began to rebuild her life.

Mari overcame addiction and completed an intensive program that provided not only a safe place for her and her son to live, but employment too. And while she was rebuilding, she also found the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Sacramento, which Marion has been a member of for the last four years.

Mari has recently secured permanent housing for her family and has gained full-time employment as a kitchen manager at a local eatery. And as fate would have it, Mari and Marion live right around the corner from the Boys & Girls Club. making it easy for them to remain a part of the family.

As part of their trip to New York, the mother and son explored popular sites in the city. They toured the Empire State Building and visited Rockefeller Center before finally heading to the NBA Store. To celebrate the occasion, the store’s window fronts were decorated in Kings gear.

Marion and Mari weren’t alone in their NBA Store visit. Tagging along with the Hills for the shopping spree were kids from the Karate-do Kyokushinkai Saikyo Dojo in Queens, NY.

A flood of emotions enthralled the participants as they were given gift cards and sent into the store. The biggest shock, however, came when none other than Santa Cuz himself stopped by to help them pick out brand new basketball gear.

“Any little gesture, any little way I can help, I’m all for it,” the Kings superstar said following the shopping spree. “Making somebody else’s life easier, why wouldn’t I do it?

“I’m just glad I can help put a smile on somebody’s face,” Cousins added.

All in all, Mari, Marion and the five kids from the Karate-do Kyokushinkai Saikyo spent a total of $5,000 during their NBA Store shopping spree. However if you asked Santa Cuz, he had no intentions of keeping track of the final tally. In his mind, the happiness experienced by everyone involved couldn’t be measured in dollars and cents.

"I don't know how much they spent and it really doesn't matter," Cousins said graciously.

In the 2016 Kings Season of Doing Good, Cousins has once again committed to giving back to those who need help the most. Just a few weeks ago, he provided Thanksgiving meals to over 300 families in the Del Paso Heights community and even hand-delivered five of them himself.

The charitable Kings superstar also has several upcoming events to help those this holiday season, including an occasion where around 4,000 bikes will be gifted to children from around the Sacramento area.

“We wanted the kids to be excited about the shopping spree, and then we wanted to go above and beyond and surprise them,” explained Scott Moak, Vice President of Community Impact, of the experience the Kings All-Star big man hosted on Saturday. “Cousins was the perfect player to take part in this event—the kids just love him, and he makes an effort to connect with them.”


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