WOMEN’S National Basketball Association legend Taj McWilliams-Franklin touched the lives boys and girls of a public elementary school at the Baseco Compound in Tondo, Manila during the NBA Cares outreach program conducted with the help of World Vision Philippines, Thursday.
McWilliams-Franklin is in the Philippines to mentor boys and girls in the JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented by Alaska basketball program. She spent a morning at the school interacting with the underprivileged children of one of the biggest slum communities in the country.
The 6’2” African-American towered over everyone at the event. Boys and girls were wide-eyed with awe of her size, her dark skin, her thick lush, jet black hair but most of all, of her incandescent smile and warm, friendly personality.
She interacted with the children by reading aloud an illustration book and telling her life story of overcoming adversity which she hoped would inspire them. Later she joined the children in playing parlor games and gave out prizes of Alaska Milk to everyone.
The JrNBA/JrWNBA Presented by Alaska is the league’s global youth basketball participation program for boys and girls. It teaches the fundamental skills of the sport as well as the core values of the game at the grassroots level in an effort to help grow and improve the youth basketball experience for players, coaches and parents.
McWilliams-Franklin is a two-time WNBA champion and a six-time all-star. She is considered one of the best low post players to play the women’s game. Her basketball career has spanned three decades. She retired from the WNBA in 2012 and is the current head coach of the women’s basketball team at Post University.
World Vision Philippines aims to provide for the needs of children and assist them through sustainable development and education.