Shaquille O’Neal, who once raised $3.1 million through his foundation, helped provide free eye care to 300,000 kids

Shaquille O'Neal, who once raised $3.1 million through his foundation, helped provide free eye care to 300,000 kids

Shaquille O’Neal was a massive celebrity in his prime. He was a dominant center for the Los Angeles Lakers making a lot of money. Now, he’s using his money for charitable causes.

The former Laker made a name for himself through his sheer size and presence in the NBA. It was basically impossible to guard Shaq once he got it going.

Not only did he have great size, but he was able to use it effectively by utilizing a polished skillset of finishing, footwork, and speed. Shaq goes down as probably the most dominant player of all time, and in the process, he won four championships and three Final MVPs.

Now, he serves as a co-host for the most entertaining sports talk show Inside the NBA. Shaq is a philanthropist and businessman too alongside his TNT gig.

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Shaquille O’Neal helped provide free eye care to 300,000 kids

Joseph Carbone started a program called Eye Care 4 Kids to help provide children with the support they need to have their eyes in good condition.

While setting up a workshop in New Jersey at the Newark Boys and Girls Club, the program caught Shaq’s attention, and he knew that he had to join in.

Shaq volunteered to become the spokesman for the program, and now, he’s helping lead a cause that goes beyond just giving glasses to kids. The program helps kids to develop an interest in reading while developing their comprehension skills.

Shaq never misses a chance to help people out when he can and serving as the spokesman for this cause is just another example of the way he continues to use his money for good causes. The program has given out more than 300,000 pairs of glasses since it was started.

Shaq once helped raise $3.1 million for kids through his foundation

Shaq founded The Shaquille O’Neal Foundation in 2019 with the hopes of serving underprivileged communities by instilling hope in them for a chance at a brighter future.

Shaq supports various charities and organizations through this organization including the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and Communities in Schools.

Shaq holds various events to raise funds for his foundation, including one this year in Las Vegas. A live auction was held for over  1,500 guests and 5,000 concert attendees, and Shaq raised $3.1 million to benefit children through his organization.

Post Edited By: Ashish Priyadarshi
NBA Shaquille O'Neal

About the author

Ashish Priyadarshi

Ashish Priyadarshi is The SportsRush's content manager and editor. Ashish freelanced for 1 year in the NFL division before taking on an editorial role in the company. He then tacked on managing content while adding on a writing role in the NBA division. Ashish has been closely following the NFL and NBA since the 2012 season when the Patriots lost the Super Bowl and Derrick Rose was at the height of his powers. Since then, Ashish has focused on honing his knowledge for both leagues in, even writing crossover pieces. In his free time, Ashish is an avid basketball player, he loves to watch movies and TV shows, immersing himself in the cinematic world. Ashish studies computer science and data science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and would love to mesh his love for sports with his technical skills.

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