Paul Pierce, captain for the Boston Celtics, held his 7th annual charity bowling event, “The Truth Strikes Again,” on Monday, Nov.17, 2008, at King’s, a bowling and billiards restaurant/bar located in Boston’s Back Bay. The proceeds of this event go to Pierce’s Truth Fund, which benefits disadvantaged youth in the greater Boston area and in his hometown of Inglewood, Calif., by promoting healthy living and empowerment for children through exercising and eating better, which helps prevent obesity and illnesses resulting from obesity, like diabetes and heart illnesses.
King’s was buzzing with excitement from the moment I walked into the room, two hours before the event was set to kick off. The tickets for this event were $500 and up so you can imagine the enthusiasm we had as volunteers for being part of it for free! I was grouped with the other volunteers who were just as excited and nervous as I was to be there. We were given T-shirts and separated into different jobs including security, welcome wagons, coat check, bowling shoe check, auctioneers, and raffle sales. A sea of green shirts began to fill the rooms from corner to corner as we set up our designated areas.
I was assigned to sell raffle tickets and prize balloons. The prize balloons were $20 a piece, each containing a prize that was worth $20 or more. These prizes included autographed celebrity photos, official Spaulding basketballs, lift tickets for Loon Mountain, and dinner for two at Mohegan Sun. The raffle tickets were $50 for an arm sleeves worth and the prizes for these tickets included a 42” plasma screen TV, V.I.P. tickets to “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart, tickets to a Celtics game and to Patriot games. All the proceeds from these raffles were put toward the Truth Fund.
Paul Pierce and his entourage walked into King’s about an hour after the event kicked off. He was followed by a film crew as he meeted and greeted the general admission guests. He was the first to arrive, but soon after his teammates were there to support their captain and his cause. These teammates included Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, Glen “Big Baby” Davis and Ray Allen.
“I think this is great. I really like when our guys do events and the players come out and support each other, I think that is very important, and our guys do a great job at that,” said Doc Rivers, the Celtics coach. Pierce was also quoted saying that he appreciates the support of his teammates “when we all do something, it’s like we’re a family, it’s huge for me.”
The team got ready for bowling after going through their press conferences and meet & greets and gathered around King’s lanes for their games. Trash talking all week at practice about Garnett’s bowling skills, Rogers bet that Rondo was the best bowler of the crew. “He has his own bowling ball, I think that means you’re good,” said Rogers.
The players bowled in the tournament with their families, friends, agents and comedians like Larry Clark. Needless to say, the game created a lot of attention in the media and with fans, who were extremely eager to watch the boys play yet another sports game.
Paul Pierce has become a face of Boston and now wants to give back to the community that has supported him in all his years at the Celtics. The Truth Fund helps kids and helps to fight the obesity problem in this country; it’s something that affects a lot of people in this community and something that I was very proud to be a part of.
Contacts:
www.NECN.com
www.paulpierce.net
Kimmel Yeager, Event Coordinator info@joshuatreeallston.com