This morning I joined thousands of Sacramento families in the “Making Strides Against Cancer” 5K. It was a beautiful autumn morning, and it was wonderful seeing so many folks out there early to support his very worthy cause.

 

Just about every weekend during this campaign, I’ve spent Sunday (and Saturday mornings, and sometimes Saturday nights), helping the many nonprofits in our community. Last night, for example, I was at the WEAVE benefit at Memorial Auditorium; WEAVE has done amazing things helping victims of domestic violence in Sacramento for 20 years and it was heartening to see the strong turnout for their annual fundraiser.  On Saturday morning, I helped plant trees with more than 100 community volunteers in North Natomas Park. During the past few weeks,  I’ve run in a benefit for the Special Olympics that started in Old Sac, participated in a Walk for Mental Illness, and other events for the nonprofits that promote awareness and prevention of autism, leukemia, and heart disease too.

 

In addition to helping me keep in shape on the campaign trail, I learn so much about our community and the families that participate in these events.  Volunteerism and community service is the backbone of our community. As government budgets get squeezed, we are depending more and more on nonprofits to do the yeoman’s work of building awareness and raising funds to address the many needs of our community.

 

A large part of the reason I’m running for Mayor is to give back to our community. After retiring from the NBA, I could have lived anywhere I wanted. But I’ve opted to come back home and do good in the neighborhood where I grew up. It’s a great feeling to see so many others in our community doing their part to lift our community and tackle the challenges our community faces. If I am blessed by the voters to be elected Mayor, I will be a visible and active part of these community-based efforts to make Sacramento a better place to live.

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