WASHINGTON, June 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Well-known celebrities, hometown heroes, and 10,000+ fans from the local community all gathered under one roof this past Saturday at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC for some great basketball for a good cause-fighting family homelessness in the DC region. They came for Freddie Mac's Annual Hoops for the Homeless(R) celebrity basketball tournament, headlined by basketball legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson. Washington Wizards All-Star Gilbert Arenas also suited up to join the Freddie Mac team for this year's event, which raised $900,000 for six local homeless nonprofits providing much needed services to homeless families in the region.
Families with children continue to be among the fastest growing segments of the homeless population. In fact, more than 12,000 individuals are homeless in the DC area, and nearly half of those are families. Homelessness also affects the youngest members of society. A quarter of the region's homeless are children.
"The number of homeless families and children in our region simply is unacceptable. That is why we organize Hoops for the Homelessness and are more committed than ever to help end homelessness in our community," explained Ralph F. Boyd, executive vice president, Community Relations, Freddie Mac. "With the support of people and organizations throughout our region, Freddie Mac's Hoops for the Homeless will continue to help more families move out of shelters and back into homes of their own."
"I am proud to be participating in Freddie Mac's Hoops for the Homeless once again. This important event gives me a chance to mix my passion for basketball with my concern for the well-being of children," said Earvin "Magic" Johnson.
This three-on-three tournament was a daylong event featuring round robin play with 48 area teams. Each team raised at least $1,000 and was assigned a celebrity coach. In addition to Earvin "Magic" Johnson, other celebrities who participated in this year's Hoops for the Homeless tournament included Washington Wizards All-Star Gilbert Arenas, Washington Wizards' Andray Blatche, Mike Hall and Roger Mason, Washington Redskin Rocky McIntosh, former Washington Redskin Ken Harvey, Washington Mystics' Alana Beard and Bernice Mosby and Baltimore Raven Dennis Haley.
"Homelessness is a first hand experience for me and my personal experiences are what have driven me to establish the Zero Two Hero Foundation (Z2H). I want children to grow up safe and healthy, and I want all families to be able to overcome hardship and get back on their feet and into a home, much like my father did for me. Freddie Mac's Hoops for the Homeless(R) is a wonderful event, and I look forward to doing my part to help end homelessness," Arenas said.
The $900,000 raised during this tournament will benefit six outstanding non-profits that work daily to help homeless families in need: Hannah House and So Others Might Eat (SOME) in DC; United Communities Against Poverty (UCAP) and Community Ministry of Montgomery County in MD; and Reston Interfaith and Securing Emergency Resources Through Volunteer Service (SERVE) in VA.
Many local companies and organizations also supported the cause by sponsoring the 2007 Freddie Mac's Hoops for the Homeless event, including The Washington Post, NBC4, CBS Radio,WMATA, Wells Fargo, Washington Mutual, Credit Suisse Securities (USA), FTN Financial, Lehman Brothers, Wachovia, Bear Stearns, Bank of America, Citigroup, BlackRock, BNP Paribas, HSBC, Fannie Mae Foundation, UBS Securities LLC, Goldman Sachs & Co., Merrill Lynch, and Morgan Stanley.
As the Washington area's top corporate philanthropist, Freddie Mac directly and through its Foundation have invested more than $312 million over the past 15 years to strengthen families and communities. Also, thousands of the company's approximately 5,500 employees have given their time and charitable contributions over the years by participating in volunteer activities throughout the community such as Hoops for the Homeless.(R) For more information on Freddie Mac's Hoops for the Homeless(R) or on the issue of homelessness, visit http://www.hoopsforthehomeless.org/ .
Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation established by Congress in 1970 to support homeownership and rental housing. Freddie Mac purchases single-family and multifamily residential mortgages and mortgage-related securities, which it finances primarily by issuing mortgage-related securities and debt instruments in the capital markets. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home possible more than 50 million times, ensuring financing for one in six homebuyers and more than four million renters. For additional information about Freddie Mac, visit: http://www.freddiemac.com/ .
