Early Holiday for Thunder, Families at City Rescue Mission
Nov 25 2009 7:30PM
Thanksgiving came a day early for families at Oklahoma City's City Rescue Mission. Thunder coaches, players, their families and staff members made a surprise visit to the facility just west of downtown.
"This is a huge deal," said Tom Jones, President of City Rescue Mission. "It's not just about the Thunder being here; it's about what the Thunder can do to make these kids feel special."
City Rescue Mission is home to 75 children right now. The number fluctuates through the year.
"In the last 12 months we've seen a 55 percent increase in women with children here," Jones said. "Some of the children and their families are chronically homeless and some aren't. Some of these kids have kind of been slapped in the face with the reality that they're homeless now and everything has changed."
That's been the life Kathleen Badgley, her husband and four children have led for the past year.
"This is a big deal for my kids to see these guys here today," she said. "All my kids love basketball and all they can talk about is the Oklahoma City Thunder."
"This is a great opportunity for our players and coaches and all of us really to help give something back to the community," said Sam Presti, Thunder General Manager and Executive Vice President. "It's especially important at this time of year. We've found that the human touch can go a long way. We're thankful for the kind of players we have because they enjoy doing this so much."
Players and coaches took turns in the serving line, dishing up helpings of a pre-Thanksgiving dinner of turkey ala king, tomatoes and onions and bread.
The visit is part of the Thunder's annual Holiday Assist initiative. Earlier this month the team distributed turkey dinners to more than 400 clients of the Salvation Army. The two-month long program is being presented by Cox and includes a variety of community outreach events.
"It's always good to give back," said Thunder forward Jeff Green while he signed autographs and posed for pictures. "It's especially important at this time of year. These folks have fallen on hard times and if we can come by and help put some smiles on their faces it's great."
Smiles have been in short supply for most of the families at the City Rescue Mission. The shelter provides more than 165-thousand beds a year to homeless men, women and children. This year the Mission will serve more than 400,000 meals.
"Homelessness is a tragedy, but the real true victims are always the children," Jones said. "They've done nothing to put themselves in this position. They feel hopeless and left out so we try to make them feel as special as we possibly can. That's why visits like this one by the Thunder are so important."
As a mother of four of those children, Kathleen Badgley couldn't agree more.
"I was a student and my husband was shot in the head in a drive-by shooting. He lived but because of his injuries he wasn't able to hold a job," she said. "We lost our place and moved in with friends for a while and then we came here. But even before all that we still were never in a position where we could attend a game or be up close to any of these players. So this is a blessing."
After the food it was on to the gym where Thunder players played one-on-one with some of the children.
"These kids, their eyes just light up when you talk to them and play basketball with them," Green said.
One of the highlights of the late afternoon was a little girl who dribbled a ball in front of Thunder forward Serge Ibaka. She stunned onlookers when she calmly lofted a shot over Ibaka's outstretched arms and scored a basket from the top of the circle. Ibaka and his teammates clapped and cheered.
"This is what it's all about," Presti said. "Seeing those reactions, making these children feel a little better."
Then as basketballs were still flying toward the baskets Thunder mascot Rumble the Bison made his grand entrance and the children abandoned Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Ibaka and all the others.
There was a hugfest with Rumble and for at least a little while, these children with no where to go, finally felt at home.
"This is a huge deal," said Tom Jones, President of City Rescue Mission. "It's not just about the Thunder being here; it's about what the Thunder can do to make these kids feel special."
City Rescue Mission is home to 75 children right now. The number fluctuates through the year.
"In the last 12 months we've seen a 55 percent increase in women with children here," Jones said. "Some of the children and their families are chronically homeless and some aren't. Some of these kids have kind of been slapped in the face with the reality that they're homeless now and everything has changed."
That's been the life Kathleen Badgley, her husband and four children have led for the past year.
"This is a big deal for my kids to see these guys here today," she said. "All my kids love basketball and all they can talk about is the Oklahoma City Thunder."
"This is a great opportunity for our players and coaches and all of us really to help give something back to the community," said Sam Presti, Thunder General Manager and Executive Vice President. "It's especially important at this time of year. We've found that the human touch can go a long way. We're thankful for the kind of players we have because they enjoy doing this so much."
Players and coaches took turns in the serving line, dishing up helpings of a pre-Thanksgiving dinner of turkey ala king, tomatoes and onions and bread.
The visit is part of the Thunder's annual Holiday Assist initiative. Earlier this month the team distributed turkey dinners to more than 400 clients of the Salvation Army. The two-month long program is being presented by Cox and includes a variety of community outreach events.
"It's always good to give back," said Thunder forward Jeff Green while he signed autographs and posed for pictures. "It's especially important at this time of year. These folks have fallen on hard times and if we can come by and help put some smiles on their faces it's great."
Smiles have been in short supply for most of the families at the City Rescue Mission. The shelter provides more than 165-thousand beds a year to homeless men, women and children. This year the Mission will serve more than 400,000 meals.
"Homelessness is a tragedy, but the real true victims are always the children," Jones said. "They've done nothing to put themselves in this position. They feel hopeless and left out so we try to make them feel as special as we possibly can. That's why visits like this one by the Thunder are so important."
As a mother of four of those children, Kathleen Badgley couldn't agree more.
"I was a student and my husband was shot in the head in a drive-by shooting. He lived but because of his injuries he wasn't able to hold a job," she said. "We lost our place and moved in with friends for a while and then we came here. But even before all that we still were never in a position where we could attend a game or be up close to any of these players. So this is a blessing."
After the food it was on to the gym where Thunder players played one-on-one with some of the children.
"These kids, their eyes just light up when you talk to them and play basketball with them," Green said.
One of the highlights of the late afternoon was a little girl who dribbled a ball in front of Thunder forward Serge Ibaka. She stunned onlookers when she calmly lofted a shot over Ibaka's outstretched arms and scored a basket from the top of the circle. Ibaka and his teammates clapped and cheered.
"This is what it's all about," Presti said. "Seeing those reactions, making these children feel a little better."
Then as basketballs were still flying toward the baskets Thunder mascot Rumble the Bison made his grand entrance and the children abandoned Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Ibaka and all the others.
There was a hugfest with Rumble and for at least a little while, these children with no where to go, finally felt at home.
