“Could not stop caring for the community” Shaquille O’Neal buys shoes worth $6800 for 13-year-old after emotional plea
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Shaquille O'Neal generous work
Shaquille O’Neal is known for their community work even after retirement days. Safe to say, the bigger the star, the bigger the work is general conscience. But sometimes even the smallest of wonders can do wonders in everyone’s heart. We know that Shaq is unlike most athletes that we have seen; he loves giving back to the community and never makes a big fuss out of it. He did it while he was active on the court, and now that he has retired, he has got more time to give more personalized attention to needy ones. This is not to disparage the worth of other athletes but rather to highlight the fact that O’Neal does so much for the community.
So, this time we cover a story of Shaquille O’Neal helping out a mother to buy the size 18 shoes that her son needed. The Atlanta-based single mom posted a plea on social media about how she was unable to buy shoes. As Shaq heard it and he came to the rescue. Shaquille O’Neal cannot stop caring for people, and buys the 13-year-old shoes – for a whopping worth of $6800!
Instead of just chipping in with one shoe, he went out and brought 10 pairs for the kid. The issue was that kid had abnormally large feet, a size 18, and the Lakers legend knew exactly where to get them. A shop that also gave Shaq a free pair, so, in kindness, Shaquille always buys shoes from the same store. This time, he splurged on $6843 and he also said he would pay for the kid’s suit.
4-time NBA Champion gave his reasons for the generosity, as he said that the kid’s mother reminded him of his own mother. Shaq also had a middle-class background and was a struggling single mom trying to get her son everything. Shaq felt the connection on a personal level and did not hesitate to help them out.
Family background of Shaquille O’Neal keeps him grounded despite having a very successful career
Shaquille O’Neal, popularly known as Shaq, is known as one of the greatest sportsmen on and off the court. He was 1st overall pick in 1992 due to his playing abilities and certainly did live up to the expectations. He won 4 NBA titles and 3 Finals MVP awards in his 19-season career. Known as the dominant force on the court has a soft heart.
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He credits his mother and her efforts in raising her kids for his sense of good deeds. When O’Neal was in infancy, his biological father Toney, who was an addict, was convicted and sent to prison for drug possession. After serving time, he gave up his parental rights and responsibility to O’Neal’s stepfather, Philip Harrison who died in 2013.
Young Shaquille O’Neal struggled while growing up. But importantly Shaq learned how his mom had to work hard to survive and make sure he lived a decent life. It wasn’t easy, of course, as Mrs. Lucille O’Neal gave birth to Shaq when she was 18, which meant things would be difficult for her and his son. She became a single mom after Shaq’s dad left, but that didn’t stop Lucille, who fought hard to give O’Neal and his siblings some basic needs.
Now a proud mother applauds her son for helping her out in taking care of the family. In 2019, while talking to Today, she said, “17-you absolutely do not know what you’re doing. So you do the best you can with what you have to work with,” said Lucille, “And then just take a day at a time.”
“Shaquille is the oldest, and he’s 47. Latifa is 41, and then Aisha is 40 and Jamal is 39. Shaquille was the one that helped me with them, and now he’s the eldest. …He takes good care of the family, so he’s setting a standard for the rest of them and has always done that.”
Shaquille also beamed when he talked about his mother. “I’m very proud,” he said. “She has always been the one who I’ve called the remote controller of my life. A lot of times when I’m sitting and not doing anything she’ll call me and say, ‘You know you need to go to school. You know you need to get your master’s [degree]. You know I don’t like what you said on TV. You know you need to get your doctorate”
“She has always been my role model, her and my father.”
Shaquille said he inherited his mom’s softer qualities. “Everything nice that I do is her and everything ferocious that I do is my father,” Well Shaq certainly is a well-brought-up child and inspiration for the young generation too.
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Kunal Chawda
(600 Articles Published)