Friday, January 29, 2010

Jeter reeling in the dough for good cause


Derek Jeter is just as passionate about his Turn 2 Foundation as he is about baseball so this weekend is really important. The New York Yankees Captain is hosting a series of events in his hometown Tampa to raise money for his foundation, including a golf tournament with participants such as basketball legend and Jeter idol Michael Jordan and his good pal Jorge Posada.

The Turn 2 Foundation has already received $150,000 check from Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Mingling with Jeter & friends on the golf course will cost $500 per ticket, which doesn't seem like a lot of money when you consider the cause. The foundation, started in 1996 and run by the Jeter family, aims to keep kids away from drugs and alcohol. The success of the foundation, largely driven by Jeter's good name and popularity in and out of baseball, is astounding: more than $10 million to fund empowerment programs in Florida, Michigan and New York.

The Turn 2 website reflects that success, showing pictures and videos of the children participating in the programs. Jeter photos are rare on the site and I think that's intentional. Jeter would much prefer to highlight the accomplishments of the kids rather than himself.

The foundation is obviously doing well and I hope the best for its future for the sake of the kids. Too often, when a player retires and is gone from the daily spotlight, their charitable endeavors suffer simply because of a lack of visibility. But I doubt Jeter will let that happen to Turn 2.

Thanks to OneTwo1 via Wikipedia for the photo.

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