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On Thursday, John Wall, in conjunction with the John Wall Family Foundation, surprised doctors and nurses at UNC Rex Hospital in Raleigh, North Carolina and MedStar Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C. with a donation of 2,300 N95 masks to aid their efforts in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Wall also partnered with Chick-Fil-A to provide approximately 600 meals for front line workers and first responders at each location.
Both locations hold a special place in Wall’s heart. Wall lost his mother, Frances Pulley, to breast cancer in December. In the months leading up to her passing, Pulley received the majority of her medical care from MedStar Washington Hospital Center and spent her final days at UNC Rex Hospital in Wall’s hometown of Raleigh.
The donations of masks and meals at both locations were made in Ms. Pulley’s name.
In addition to providing the much-needed supplies and meals, Wall took time to connect with the doctors and nurses in both hospitals. Wall conducted an interview with Ashley Jenkins, registered nurse and ICU Patient Care Manager at Medstar Washington Hospital Center, for CloseUp360.com and, at both locations, held group Zoom conversations with doctors and nurses to say thank you for all the work they are doing to combat the pandemic. Wall also extended Jenkins an invite to a future Wizards game.
“I just wanted to thank you all for all the great work you’re doing,” Wall told doctors and nurses at MedStar Washington Hospital Center. “I was happy to be able to donate additional masks to you all in memory of my mom, Frances Pulley. She did a lot of her chemotherapy there and I wanted to thank you all for all the great work you did by supporting her there and all the great work you’re doing to help people fight COVID-19. Keep up the great work.”
“I just wanted to take time out to say you all are making a big sacrifice, so you definitely don’t go unnoticed with all the hard work you’re putting in, coming to work every day and doing the things you have to do,” Wall said. “We definitely appreciate all the hard work and dedication you all are doing. Definitely keep going and don’t stop fighting.”
Wall, who won the NBA Cares Community Assist Award in 2016, lost his father to cancer when he was young, leaving his mother to raise him and his siblings. He has spoken often about the impact his mother had on him growing up and throughout his adult life and credits her with inspiring him to be as active as he is off the court and in the community.
“I was put on this earth to do something and I was blessed to be able to play basketball,” Wall said in 2013. “But my main thing was to keep striving to be a better person and that’s one thing my mom always instilled in me. (She told him): ‘it doesn’t matter what nobody thinks of you as a basketball player, they’re always going to look at you as a person first.’”