Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. He is often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time. Johnson played 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). After winning a national championship with Michigan State in 1979, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Lakers, leading the team to five NBA championships during their Showtime era. Johnson retired abruptly in 1991 after announcing that he had contracted HIV, but returned to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, winning the All-Star MVP Award. After protests against his return from his fellow players, he retired again for four years, but returned in 1996, at age 36, to play 32 games for the Lakers before retiring for the third and final time.
Ryan Wayne White was an American teenager from Kokomo, Indiana, who became a national poster child for HIV/AIDS in the United States after his school barred him from attending classes following a diagnosis of AIDS. As a hemophiliac, he became infected with HIV from a contaminated factor VIII blood treatment and, when diagnosed in December 1984, was given six months to live. Doctors said he posed no risk to other students, as AIDS is not an airborne disease and spreads solely through bodily fluids, but AIDS was poorly understood by the general public at the time. When White tried to return to school, many parents and teachers in Howard County rallied against his attendance due to unwarranted concerns of the disease spreading to other students and staff. A lengthy administrative appeal process ensued, and news of the conflict turned White into a popular celebrity and advocate for AIDS research and public education. Surprising his doctors, Ryan White lived five years longer than predicted. He died on April 8, 1990, one month before his high school graduation.
The Great Society was a set of domestic programs in the United States launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 and 1965. The term was first referenced during a 1964 speech by Johnson at Ohio University, then later formally presented at the University of Michigan, and came to represent his domestic agenda. The main goal was the total elimination of poverty and racial injustice.
Kevin Maurice Johnson is an American former professional basketball player and Democratic Party politician who served as the 55th mayor of Sacramento, California from 2008 to 2016. Elected in 2008 and re-elected in 2012, Johnson is the first African American to serve as mayor of Sacramento. Before entering politics, Johnson was a professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). After a stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers during a portion of his rookie year, the point guard played as a member of the Phoenix Suns for the remainder of his NBA career.
The war on poverty is the unofficial name for legislation first introduced by United States President Lyndon B. Johnson during his State of the Union address on January 8, 1964. This legislation was proposed by Johnson in response to a national poverty rate of around nineteen percent. The speech led the United States Congress to pass the Economic Opportunity Act, which established the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) to administer the local application of federal funds targeted against poverty. The forty programs established by the Act were collectively aimed at eliminating poverty by improving living conditions for residents of low-income neighborhoods and by helping the poor access economic opportunities long denied from them.
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is a private foundation that makes grants and impact investments to support non-profit organizations in approximately 117 countries around the world. It has an endowment of $7.6 billion and provides approximately $260 million annually in grants and impact investments. It is based in Chicago, and in 2014 it was the 12th-largest private foundation in the United States. It has awarded more than US$7.92 billion since its first grants in 1978.
Burudi Ali Johnson is an American former professional football player who was a running back for eight seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is an American philanthropic organization. It is the largest one focused solely on health. Based in Princeton, New Jersey, the foundation focuses on access to health care, public health, health equity, leadership and training, and changing systems to address barriers to health. RWJF has been credited with helping to develop the 911 emergency system, reducing tobacco use among Americans, lowering rates of unwanted teenage pregnancies, and improving perceptions of hospice care.
Samuel Gene Maghett, known as Magic Sam, was an American Chicago blues musician. He was born in Grenada County, Mississippi, and learned to play the blues from listening to records by Muddy Waters and Little Walter. After moving to Chicago at the age of 19, he was signed by Cobra Records and became well known as a bluesman after the release of his first record, "All Your Love", in 1957. He was known for his distinctive tremolo guitar playing.
The National Press Foundation is a nonprofit journalism training organization. It educates journalists on complex issues and trains them in reporting tools and techniques. It recognizes and encourages excellence in journalism through its awards.
Adonal David Foyle is a Vincentian-American former professional basketball center. He was selected by the Golden State Warriors with the eighth overall selection of the 1997 NBA draft. Foyle played ten seasons with the Warriors until the team bought out his contract on August 13, 2007. At the time, he had been Golden State's longest-tenured player. He then played two seasons with the Orlando Magic and part of the 2008–09 season with the Memphis Grizzlies, sat out the next season due to knee surgery, and retired. As of 2018, Foyle does Warriors post-game commentary for ABC 7 in San Francisco.
The Grand Concourse is an integrated walkway and green space network connecting 10 municipalities in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It has over 200 kilometers (120 mi) of walkways linking every major park, river, pond, and green space in the Northeast Avalon region. The Grand Concourse is managed by the Grand Concourse Authority, a non-profit organization with a board of directors made up of representatives from a variety of community-based and government groups.
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, also known as the Knight Foundation, is an American non-profit foundation that provides grants for journalism, communities, and the arts.
Paul William Westhead is an American retired basketball coach. He was the head coach for three National Basketball Association (NBA) teams and an assistant for four others, and also coached in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), American Basketball Association (ABA), and Japan Basketball League (JBL). In his first year as an NBA head coach, he led a rookie Magic Johnson and the Los Angeles Lakers to the 1980 NBA Finals, which they won in six games for the team's first title in eight years. Westhead won titles in both the NBA and WNBA, and he is also remembered as the coach of the Loyola Marymount University (LMU) men's basketball team. Westhead is known for an unorthodox, run-and-gun style called "The System.” He was nicknamed "The Professor" due to his former career as an English teacher prior to coaching and his tendency to quote Shakespeare and other literary sources while coaching. He attended Saint Joseph's University.
WMJJ is a radio station licensed to Birmingham, Alabama. Owned by San Antonio-based iHeartMedia, it broadcasts an adult contemporary format. This format temporarily switches to Christmas music for the months of November and December. Its studios are located at Beacon Ridge Tower in Birmingham, and its transmitter is on the west end of the Red Mountain range.
The Dollywood Foundation is a non-profit organization founded by Dolly Parton, with headquarters in Sevierville, Tennessee. Shortly after the opening of the Dollywood theme park in 1986, the Dollywood Foundation was created in April 1988, and began by offering scholarships to local high school students. From there it grew into the Imagination Library, started in 1995, which distributes free books to children monthly, up until the age of 5. The Dollywood Foundation grew again into the My People Fund, which started in 2016 after wildfires ripped through Tennessee. The current President of the Dollywood Company is Craig Ross. Today, the foundation continues to grant scholarships and awards, and provides support to numerous non-profit organizations that aim to improve the quality of life of children and others in need.
The Jackie Robinson Foundation is a national, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which gives scholarships to minority youths for higher education, as well as preserves the legacy of Baseball Hall of Fame member Jackie Robinson. The foundation was founded by Rachel Robinson, the wife of Jackie, in 1973, a couple of months after his death. The foundation provides four-year college scholarships in conjunction with a comprehensive set of skills and opportunities to disadvantaged students of color to ensure their success in college and to develop their leadership potential. Its hands-on, four-year program includes peer and professional mentoring, internship placement, extensive leadership training, international travel and community service options, the conveyance of practical life skills, and myriad networking opportunities. The foundation's strategic combination of financial assistance and support services results in a nearly 100% college graduation rate. Since its founding, over 1,450 scholars have received scholarships. Support for the foundation comes from various sponsors. Among its supporters are Major League Baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers, General Electric, Goldman Sachs, and Nike, Inc.
The 1979-80 NBA season was the Lakers' 32nd season in the NBA and the 20th season in Los Angeles. It featured a 20-year old rookie Magic Johnson leading the Lakers to their seventh NBA Championship, defeating the Philadelphia 76ers led by Julius Erving in six games in the NBA Finals. This was also the team's first season under the ownership of Jerry Buss. Magic's season represented the birth of the Showtime Lakers.
The Charlotte Post, founded in 1878, is an African American, English language weekly newspaper community based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Charlotte Post has been distributed in countries surrounding Mecklenburg and upstate South Carolina. The Post is read by thousands of area residents and has earned numerous national and local journalism and service awards. The newspaper is owned by The Charlotte Post Publishing Company in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The Black AIDS Institute, formerly known as the African American AIDS Policy Training Institute, is a non-profit charitable organization founded in 1999 by Phill Wilson to promote awareness and prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS by targeting African American communities. Their motto is "Our People, Our Problem, Our Solution." The Institute is very active in educating African American communities through their programs, like the Black Treatment Advocates Network and the African American HIV University. These two projects work with the communities to educate the people about the science of HIV, medical advancements, and prevention methods. The Institute has been received well through many other organizations providing funding to it. Some top funders include the Elton John AIDS Foundation, the Magic Johnson Foundation, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and more.
