WNBA All-Stars and sisters Chiney
Ogwumike of the Connecticut Sun and
Nneka Ogwumike of the Los Angeles
Sparks were named recipients of the
July WNBA Cares Community Assist
Award presented by State Farm for
their generosity and charitable efforts across the
globe./p>
On the court, the sisters made history in April
becoming only the second set of siblings ever
selected with the top overall pick in an American
professional sports draft.
Chiney and Nneka’s parents are originally from
Nigeria, and the family maintains deep ties to the
country. The sisters teamed up with the US Fund for
UNICEF to launch a fundraising competition which
helps raise funds to support UNICEF programmes,
such as the Girls’ Education Project, that focuses on
education and empowerment for young women in
Nigeria./p>
The Girls’ Education Project aims to give one million
girls in Nigeria access to quality learning, provide
scholarships for female teachers and establish safe
spaces for girls./p>
The goal of the competition is to engage middle
school, high school and AAU basketball teams across
the country. Competition participants can enter as a
team or individually by logging on to Chiney and
Nneka’s fundraising page: www.crowdrise.com/
nnekaandchiney. Winners of the competition will
receive a private basketball clinic with the Ogwumike
sisters.
They also recently hosted a basketball clinic for local
athletes at St. Bernard’s High School in Uncasville,
Conn., and educated the group about the Girls’
Education Project. The clinic included basketball drills
and friendly competition, with the sisters serving as
team captains.
"We've always wanted to make a difference, and our
Nigerian culture is a huge part of who we are," said
Chiney Ogwumike. “Basketball has empowered us to
educate people about this cause – that’s a lot bigger
than what we do on the court.”
“These girls have a right to an education and to live
without fear,” said Nneka Ogwumike. "We hope that
by making others aware of the situation in Nigeria
that it will help make a difference in these girls’
lives.”
In recognition of their efforts, the WNBA and State
Farm will donate $7 500 to the US Fund for UNICEF.
The WNBA Community Assist Award presented by
State Farm is awarded monthly during the season to
the player that best reflects the WNBA’s passion to
make a difference in the community./p>
Please visit wnba.com/statefarmcommunityassist for
more information on the award and its recipients.
This is dummy text. It is not meant to be read. Accordingly, it is difficult to figure out when to end it. But then, this is dummy text. It is not meant to be read. Period.
ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon