It is so easy to get caught up in all the drama in professional sports with every move of the professional athlete being scrutinized by the media. Thankfully today was one of those days when a professional athlete stepped up and proved that there are genuine society values reflective in our sports stars of today like philanthropy. For those who are not familiar with this term it means “love of humanity”.
We have learned in Buchan’s class that if we want to be extraordinary sport managers then we have to know what is going on in the world around us and how it affects not only us personally but professionally. Thankfully Kevin Durant is aware of this notion. Furthermore, we learned in week 1 of Dr. Kauer’s class that sport can be reflective of societal values. Given that I have family from Oklahoma, I know the type of culture that is in place there. It is one that puts family values first and a great deal of respect is given to your neighbor and community as if they were part of your own family.
Today Kevin Durant donated $1 million dollars to the American Red Cross to help out his local community that was devastated by the recent tornado. Kevin understands how much he means to Oklahoma and the local community and he realizes how much those fans mean to his success. Not only did Kevin step up for the community so did the Oklahoma Thunder organization which matched Kevin’s $1 million donation.
Given that the Thunder just have been knocked out of the playoffs, the pain of defeat is still on Kevin’s mind but an event like this helped shift his focus on something more important like being able to help out those in need. Tragic events like this make life surreal not only for athletes but also for the rest of society because we feel for those families that have lost loved ones and homes. A great societal value that doesn’t get shown a lot in the media is getting great coverage right now and that is when times get hard we as a society come together to help our family and friends out.
Travis Roberts
LT-24
KIN 577
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