“I have family members who were involved in gang violence,” Wade admitted during a one-on-one interview shortly before his charity event at Boomers! “I grew up seeing gang violence firsthand, but it never looked appealing to me. I picked friends who were not involved in gangs. I grew up around it, and a lot of kids just think it’s cool. But being cool doesn’t get you anywhere. It gets you out there too early in the fast life and doing things you shouldn’t be doing. There are other things in life that kids should be doing besides joining a gang. God put us all on this earth for a reason. The things that come from gangs are all negative.”
The devastation that gang violence has visited on Chicago’s youth grabbed national headlines several months ago when 16-year-old Derrion Albert was killed following an after school brawl between a couple of groups teenagers. During the 2008-09 school year, 34 Chicago area students were killed and 290 students were shot. Wade held several rallies in Chicago to remember the fallen victims.
“For the last two years, I have done ‘Stop the Violence’ marches in Chicago because our youth are dying,” he says. “We got together in the streets and marched, and we [released] a balloon for every kid that died in the city of Chicago. We are trying to let the youth know that they have so much to live for, and we can do much more as a community if we come together and stop fighting. I know how tough it is to grow up in Chicago. It’s very rough. We need more voices to let these kids see more positive things. That’s why I do as many charity events as possible. I grew up in the community. When I was growing up, we didn’t have anyone to come back and mentor us. I always wanted to do that and basketball has allowed me to do it on a big level.”
Wade’s superior basketball skills have allowed him to accomplish most of what he dreamed of as a youth.
Since being drafted in 2003, Wade has captured an NBA championship, won an Olympic gold medal and remains one of the top fi ve players in the world’s most celebrated basketball league. His outgoing personality and keen business acumen inspired corporations such as T-Mobile, Gatorade and Pepperidge Farms to form business partnerships with him. Last summer, Wade received a call from his childhood idol, Michael Jordan, who handpicked him to endorse the most renowned basketball shoe of all time. During NBA All-Star weekend, Wade will become the fi rst basketball player —since the brand’s namesake — to endorse the iconic sneakers. “Being a part of the Jordan brand is an honor,” Wade says. “It’s the 25th year of the brand and I’m 27. The brand has basically been around as long as I have been alive. I grew up with the brand. Air Jordans messed the game up for other athletes. The things that it did for the sneaker business was crazy. I want to continue to keep growing with the brand. Twenty-five years ago, Jordan didn’t think that his shoes would be in the position that they are in today. Hopefully down the line, I can have someone representing my brand.”
Jordan discussed why he believed that Wade was the perfect NBA player to carry on the Jordan legacy.
“Sometimes you have to pass the torch,” Jordan said in a statement. “He [Dwyane Wade] epitomizes what the brand represents. Being a player from our home community of Chicago, he has won championships already, [and] his work ethic …are all things that I feel like represent the brand. I think we can build a great relationship.” Although Wade continues to make advances on the court and in business, he has been forced to publicly deal with the tumultuous divorce from his wife, Siohvaughn. With the divorce making headlines for much of the 2009 NBA season, Wade’s celebrity status has made it difficult for him to handle his troubling situation privately. “You have to continue to let people know that you are human,” Wade admits. “We all make mistakes, but I show people the good things that I do as well. It’s not easy. You have to always think about places before you go [there], and it restricts some of the things that you can do.” Wade realizes that most bloggers and media outlets will continue to focus on the salacious aspects of his life. Unfortunately, he rarely receives that level of attention for his good works like building a church for his mother and continuing to be an important role model for inner-city kids and his own children.
Shortly before Wade’s interview concluded, his sons, 7-year-old Zaire and 3-year-old Zion, playfully jumped into his lap and gave him hug. In that moment, the championship rings and scandalous reports no longer mattered. Wade was in his comfort zone. “It feels great to have an opportunity to raise sons,” he says. “I’m blessed to give them things I never had while growing up. You have to find that thing in them that made you strive for success, when they have so much. Parenting is the best thing in life. I just want to be able to continue to do the right things in life, and wherever it goes, it goes.”
