Kevin Durant ducked his head through the doorway, Transformers action figures and dolls in hand, bringing smiles and excited screams to the entire room.
There’s a growing problem in this part of the country, and on Wednesday Kevin Durant make an extra effort to help out. As a part of his continued relationship with Positive Tomorrows, the only school in the state that provides education for homeless children, Durant dropped by to give kindergarten through fifth grade students a wonderful holiday surprise. Susan Agel, the President of Positive Tomorrows was extremely grateful that Durant has chosen her organization to impact.
“Our primary goal is to help children who come from very chaotic circumstances, living in deep poverty, overcome some of the barriers that they face in having educational success,” Agel said.
“We’re so fortunate to have support from (Durant) and other members of our community,” Agel continued. “It says a lot about a person’s belief system. It says a lot about a person’s ability to give to others and it makes it much easier for us to go about what we have to do every day.”
For Durant, who has always invested his time in giving back to the Oklahoma City community, Wednesday was a chance to give kids a sense of normalcy around the holidays. Prior to the event, Durant looked at Positive Tomorrows’ wish-list that charitable organizations and others can help fulfill. Instead, Durant provided every item on the list.
“I’m just helping kids that don’t have the opportunity to enjoy Christmas the way I enjoyed it as a kid,” Durant said. “To be able to give back is big, especially with the platform that we have. We have to utilize what we have and who we are at this point and try to help others.”
Perkins Reads to Elementary School Children
Across town in Bethany, students who had a perfect attendance record at Earl Harris Elementary School were brought into the library for a special surprise.
As they eagerly awaited in anticipation, suddenly in strolled Kendrick Perkins with a Thunder blue Santa hat on top. He sat in the big chair at the front of the students, brought one little girl up to sit next to him, and the duo helped one another read How the Grinch Stole Christmas to the students.
“This is one of my favorite events,” Perkins said. “I like coming in because it’s a fun book to read. It’s always good to come back and brighten up the kids’ days."
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As a part of the Thunder’s Reading Timeout program, which is presented by American Fidelity and is a part of the Thunder's seventh annual Cox Holiday Assist Program, not only did Perkins help reward the students for their attendance record, he also emphasized the importance of literacy. It’s a message that the teachers at Earl Harris Elementary try to get across to their students every day, but having Perkins there made the message extra impactful.
“I really appreciate Kendrick Perkins and the Thunder offering programs like this to emphasize reading to students,” Earl Harris Elementary’s principal, Reuben Bellows, said. “It’s a very positive thing and I’m sure these kids will remember this for the rest of their life.”
“You just never know,” Perkins said. “You’re trying to encourage them to read and encourage them at a young age to be involved in school.”
Westbrook Brings Boys & Girls Club Kids to Foot Locker
After both of those events, Russell Westbrook popped into the Foot Locker House of Hoops at Penn Square Mall with five special friends in tow. As a former member of the Boys & Girls Club, Westbrook has always held a special place in his heart for children who are currently members, so he brought a group of them with him during a special shoe unveiling.
Every year he hosts a Thanksgiving dinner at the Boys & Girls Club, and on Wednesday he furthered his relationship by bringing five kids who displayed the attitude of “doing the right thing when no one is watching” to Foot Locker and treating them to a shopping spree. The smiles on the kids’ faces spread from ear to ear, and as Westbrook saw them from across the store, he flashed his patented grin too.