When Shaquille O’Neal Turned LA into a Snowy Wonderland to Make a Small Kid Happy on Christmas

Shaquille O’Neal is known for showing his love for underprivileged kids and youngsters. Once, Shaq gave the kids of LA a snowy Christmas surprise, gifting them something they would have never thought to see in their region. During his early years in LA, when he joined the Los Angeles Lakers, one small kid gave the big fella a reason to turn his Shaq-A-claus mode on.

In 2011, Shaq revealed how he turned Grand Avenue into a street full of snow on Christmas, all for a young kid who did not come from the best of backgrounds. He would often fulfill all needs and requirements for kids but this one stuck with him. As mentioned in his 2011 book, ‘Shaq Uncut: My Story’, 

“Shaq-a-Claus shifted his Santa hat on his head, gleefully clapping his hands together as he approached the community center in Watts…And now, Shaq happily took orders for their mostly routine Christmas wants: computer games, bicycles, a talking dolly. Yet it was the wish of one small boy that resonated with him.”

All it took was one young kid to look into his eyes with a glimmer of hope, asking the Big Aristotle for something that only a real Santa Claus could pull off. He wanted to see snow in the streets of LA, “What I’d really like for Christmas is snow. I’ve never seen it. I asked my momma about it once, and she said I never will see it because we’re going to be stuck here for the rest of our lives.”

On holidays, the Lakers legend often takes kids’ requests and goes above and beyond for their happiness. However, this one stuck with him, and on the way back to his mansion, O’Neal asked his uncle to come up with a plan. Known to fulfill his unusual requests, Shaq’s uncle, Mike Parris, made sure not to let his nephew down.

Shaq finally fulfilled the kid’s request and gave the city a reason to smile on the day of happiness, “One month later, the rumble of three dump trucks thundering down Central Avenue sent the startled children of Watts flocking to the street. Their community center parking lot had been transformed into a winter wonderland, blanketed with mounds and mounds of snow, all imported from Bear Mountain.”

Shaquille O’Neal bringing Christmas joy for years

Ever since making it into the league, Shaquille O’Neal has constantly given back to the community. Providing food and shelter to drug and crime-riddled neighborhoods on holidays is just one of them. However, Shaq began with his Shaq-A-Claus initiative due to a 1992 incident that instilled the need to give back to young kids.

Shaquille O’Neal’s mother asked him for some money so she could buy gifts for about 1000 to 2000 underprivileged kids on Christmas. But when Shaq found out those kids had not been getting anything for years, he took it upon himself to make their Christmas special.

O’Neal and his uncle Jerome went to U-haul, filled a truck with toys, and dropped five toys each for 1000 kids. Since then, it has become a ritual and Shaq has not missed a Christmas. He has even partnered with multi-national businesses and companies to bring joy to those kids every year and has even expanded his Shaq-A-Claus to multiple cities.