Wade's All-Star Weekend - 2009

Phoenix, AZ

Phoenix, AZ I February, 2009: Miami HEAT guard, Dwyane Wade, made his annual appearance during the NBA All-Star Weekend to keep turning dreams into realities and improving the life quality of the residents; this time of Phoenix, Arizona. Although the weekend was filled with corporate appearances and All-Star festivities, Wade's mission was, as every year, to leave Phoenix a better place than he found it. With that mission in mind, Wade's overall platform was to improve the quality of life of the economically disadvantaged population. To achieve this Wade and his family started by:

• Organizing a Meet and Greet Luncheon with other celebrity friends to raise funds for The Society of St. Vincent de Paul
• Donated $50K to the St. Vincent de Paul shelter in support of their efforts to provide for the homeless

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul

With homelessness being a key issue in Phoenix, Wade and his family visited, a shelter that has served the homeless and economically disadvantaged populations since 1946.

In line of the theme for the luncheon "Believe it & Leave it" Wade's mother Jolinda shared her inspirational story of triumph, from homelessness, to now as a pastor and dedicated philanthropist. Wade and his sister, Tragil, also spoke about their journey from childhood to where they are now, which was encouraging and uplifting to many there. Jimmy Walker, a dedicated volunteer at The Society of St. Vincent de Paul, also shared encouraging words with the group. During their personal visit to encourage and uplift families in need, Wade surprised 25 children and parents from the shelter with tickets to the NBA's T-Mobile Rookie Challenge. He also generously donated $50,000 to the shelter in support of their efforts to provide for the homeless.

Meet and Greet Luncheon

On February 14, 2009, Wade hosted his second annual All-Star Luncheon in efforts to raise funds for The Society of St. Vincent de Paul. At the luncheon, Wade was joined by all-time great Muhammad Ali, American Idol winner Jordin Sparks, former teammate Alonzo Mourning, Chris Tucker, and other celebrity friends. Later on that night, Wade was honored by the NBA Players Association for his service to the Community at the annual Players Association Gala.