This past weekend, Hurricane Florence slammed into the coasts of North and South Carolina, while damaging and flooding both states nearly completely. In North Carolina specifically, there were many without food and shelter.
Coincidentally, one of the cities hit the hardest was Wilmington, North Carolina. Michael Jordan’s hometown. According to the Charlotte Observer, MJ donated $2 million to aid in the hurricane relief efforts.
“You gotta take care of home,” he told the Charlotte Observer. “You don’t want to see any of that anywhere, but when it’s home, that’s tough to swallow.”
The $2 million donations will be split into two $1 million donations. American Red Cross will take half to aid with food and shelter, while the other half will go to the Foundation for the Carolinas Florence Response Fund, who hands money out to non-profits in the two states. This half-donation to both organizations is for the short and long-term efforts.
“People need to understand this will not be a week-long process. This is going to have a huge disruption on people’s lives—not for 10 days, but for years,” said Jordan.
As if Jordan’s donation wasn’t enough, the Charlotte Hornets, the team he owns, are participating in relief efforts as well. They are working closely with the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Metrolina and Food Lion and partnering with Fanatics to curate a “Carolina Strong” T-shirt with net proceeds going to the Carolinas Florence Response Fund.
Along with the NBA legend’s personal donation, the Charlotte Hornets (who are owned by Jordan) are also participating in relief efforts that include packing food boxes with the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Metrolina and Food Lion, as well as partnering with Fanatics to create a “Carolina Strong” T-shirt with net proceeds going to the Foundation for the Carolinas Hurricane Florence Response Fund.
“Carolina Strong” T-shirts can be purchased here for $24.99.