SPOKANE, Wash. — After attending a back to school shopping event in Spokane last year, Gonzaga junior forward Ben Gregg is setting up the same event in his hometown of Portland.
Gregg is hoping to help underprivileged children in Portland acquire new clothes and a fresh haircut before school starts this fall.
The Spokane Quaranteam led by Rick Clark held the same event in Spokane last August and Gregg's eyes were opened when he saw how grateful the recipients were to have new clothes.
"It was crazy because a lot of the kids had new tags on their clothes and they did not know what to do with the tags because they had never had new clothes before. Seeing the joy they had when they went shopping for new clothes for the first time, it just warms your soul for sure," Gregg said.
Witnessing how much of an impact that event created, Gregg decided to begin fundraising for an event of his own back home in Portland, partnering with the Mullen Polk Foundation. Gregg credits his parents for inspiring his philanthropy.
"When I grew up, my parents were always giving back to the community. My mom works for United Way, a nonprofit, so they instilled it in me early to help people," Gregg said.
Gregg also hopes by giving back and showing compassion that the recipients may one day pay this good deed forward.
"I am trying to give them a special day that they can remember for a long time and once they grow up, maybe they can give back too. As Rick (Clark) says, 'light attracts light,'" Gregg said.
Gregg and teammate Nolan Hickman will both have free youth basketball camps in the coming month.
Especially in the social media age where mental health issues are rising among young people, Gregg wants to give his recipients an experience to boost their confidence heading into a new school year.
"I just want to give them a day to look forward to and have fun with other kids and hopefully build some relationships off of that," Gregg said.
The planned date for Gregg's event is August 23.
If you would like to donate to Gregg's fundraiser, you can do so here.
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