“Don’t give up. Don’t ever give up.”
Jimmy
Valvano, 1993 – announcing the Jimmy V Foundation
December 1-7 is Jimmy V week on ESPN. You may not know who Jimmy Valvano was, but if you have had the misfortune of knowing someone afflicted with cancer, the odds are he and his life’s mission impacted your life.
Jimmy Valvano was a successful basketball coach,
commentator, and author. He was a person
of strong conviction and personal drive.
At an early age he pulled out white index cards and began to write down
his personal goals for life. He wanted
to play high school and college basketball, he wanted to become an assistant
coach, go on to become a head coach, cut down the nets in Madison Square Garden
and win a National Championship. At age
36, he was able to pull out those cards and cross off every item on the
list. Throughout his life he developed a
personal philosophy which allowed an ordinary man to accomplish the
extraordinary. He was commented, “There
are 86,400 seconds in a day. It is up to
you to decide what to do with them.”
Jimmy V chose to cherish and make the most of each one.
After accomplishing his goals on the basketball court, he
explored new directions from writing to commentating. He was not interested in limiting himself to
a single profession. He embraced
diversity in his life and his interests.
In 1993, Jimmy Valvano was given an obstacle that would
prove to be his most difficult. He was diagnosed
with cancer. The cancer proved to be too
much for him to personally overcome, but through his vision and passion he has
inspired and continues to inspire funding for education and research to cure
cancer. At the time of his diagnosis,
cancer was an underfunded and devastating disease. His charismatic and infectious attitude
towards life and easy appeal to people made him an ideal person to raise the
awareness of cancer and its impacts on our world and to raise arms to find a
way to cure cancer. While no cure has
been found, through continued research many forms of treatment have been
developed. The Jimmy V Foundation has
risen over $100 million in the past 18 years to fund cancer awareness and
research.
Jimmy V is an inspiring person. His attitude towards life, even in the face
of overwhelming obstacles is something to admire.
Below is a video clip from the 1993 ESPY awards when he
received the Arthur Ashe award for Courage.
During his speech he announces the Jimmy V Foundation.
Below are highlights from the 1983 National
Championship. It was one of the most
exciting endings the tournament has ever seen.
What do you think of Jimmy Valvano, his life and his
mission? Do you have or are you
developing a personal philosophy for how you live your life? If so, would you mind sharing? Who inspires you to be a better person? What qualities do they possess you admire?
he looks like a great coach and i bet he is world wide famous probably.
ReplyDeletedoes he still coach. i feel bad that he has cancer but i bet he thinks of it as a small wall that he can brake through.
that was me Ben hermes
ReplyDeleteJack- Jimmy v was an amazing coach so in some ways his amazing personality for the game almost makes him my role model along with Phil Jackson. My number one role model is Kobe Bryant because his personality is not the best ,but he has a great knack for the game.
ReplyDeleteKylee-I think jimmy is an awesome person with a great personality and mission in his life.I have kinda ben thin king abuot how I live my life but,not really.When I think about my life I think of how nice I am to others.My role models would probely be my mom and my dad because they push me to get better in academics and athletics.
ReplyDeleteMargaret-I think Jimmy isa trooper and a great coach. It sounds like he was not one of those people who was dreading about cancer he was a good man. He must has been so excited when he won the championship game and super proud. Yes i am developing a personal philosophy in life.I think everybody is. I am developing a life healthy eating habits, exercising habits,being kind,and being honest. Lots of people inspire me to be a better person like my mom, dad, and entire family. Also my good friends and teachers. Honesty, kindness, hardworking, and to love one another.
ReplyDeleteClaire- I think that Jimmy V is a great coach and a great role model for kids. He had a great view of life and did not let his cancer change that. Yes, I am developing a personal philosophy of life. My philosophy is that you should never give up, just like Jimmy V did. No matter how hard life is, you should always push through it. Someone that inspires me to be a better person is my basketball coach, Kristi Frith. She always pushes me to work harder, enjoy the game, and have fun. She possesses many qualities, one of which is that she is very kind. She is also thoughtful and doesn't push you so hard that you drop to the ground.
ReplyDeleteGraci- I think Jimmy V is a great coach and a great person. When he had cancer he decided not to give up but to live life to the fullest. Yes, I am developing a personal philosophy. I am devleoping to try to be kind to everyone even if there annoying and to never give up even if it seems like everything is falling apart. Someone that inspires me to be a better person is my competitive dance coach, Amber McKendrick. She makes me a better person by giving me tips of what I should do better. Also, if you do something wrong she won't yell at you. She will tell you what you did wrong and then work on it with you. Another thing she teaches me is to have fun and enjoy life.
ReplyDeleteGrace- I think that Jimmy is a great role model who is courageous and works hard to achieve his goals and make the best of life. He tries to make a negative situation, like cancer, and make it positive. I try to have a positive attitude about life. I'm inspired by people who are honest, loyal, kind and happy.
ReplyDeleteCharlie-I think that Jimmy was a great coach and a great person. When he was diagnosed with cancer, he said I am going to make my life worth living instead of saying I give up. I'm developing a personal philosophy, by doing extra things that are not needed to help me, my family, or the community. The person who inspires me to be a better person is my parents because they were the first teachers in life and taught me good from bad, and they helped me take my first steps.
ReplyDeleteMadeline- I think that Jimmy Valvano is a huge inspiration to people who are fighting something hard in their life. I think that his mission was great, because what he wanted to get done he did and nobody could tell him no. I want to live my life knowing that I helped to make a difference in our world. I pretty much think that if you don’t do your part to help your world, country, or community grow, than you are not really living the way God would want you to. Somebody that inspires me to be a better person is Jimmy Valvano, because as soon as I watched the video I wanted to be like him when I grew up. He was kind caring, and pushed himself because he knew what he wanted to accomplish in life. I have big dreams just like he did, and I want to be able to accomplish my goals just like he was able to do.
ReplyDeleteIsaiah-My mom inspires me to be a better person. She always corrects me if im wrong and never puts me down. I think that Jimmy is a beacon of hope and courage to people who dont think they can do it. This is a story people can look to to see that anything is possible for you if you try.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth- I think Jimmy V was an isporational person in life i love his mission and how he really made it come true. I have learned that im developing a trait that I am going throw life in a happy non-violent attitude. Someone who inspires me is Katy Perry because her message to people mostly girls is to live a diffrent life to go and show people you can reach for the stars. Some qualities that i admire from her are that she has such I possitive atitude and she can really show people if you say she cant do something you will just have to get proven wrong and thats what i admire about her and her atitudes in life.
ReplyDeleteHenry- Jimmy V was a great person because he didn't want money to save his life, but to save other people's lives. My mom is that person because she is telling right from wrong and how to do things better. This is why my mom is my person to look up to for whatever help.
ReplyDeleteRobert Fritz- I think that Jimmy Valvano has been a huge inspiration to everybody with cancer and every other person in the world that is fighting any another disease and that his mission is a great way to help people with cancer and that he used his life well for good purposes. I already have my own personal philosophy for living my life and it is try hard and get good grades then play hard and have fun. Somebody that inspires me would be my parents and God because they all try to make me a better person and they both love me. Some of the qualities that they posses that I admire would be kind hearted, loving, and honesty.
ReplyDeleteEmile-I think Jimmy Valvano is a great role modle and with starting a cancer research foundation with cures. Jimmy also helps people around the world for welfare and good health. i am trying to live life devoted to God and doing his biddings. my uncle John he is strong physically and spiritually he believes in God and trustes in him.
ReplyDeleteAustin- I think Jimmy is a great coach and has a wonderful foundation for cancer. Yes I have a goal in life. My goal is to be honest and kind and work my hardest and get a good quality education so I can contribute to society. My Mom inspires me to be a better person. She is always telling me right from wrong and helping me when I am upset.
ReplyDeleteEmily - Jimmy V looked like a great coach with an amazing foundation to help people with cancer. Yes, I am developing a personal philosophy. It's to be nice and caring to everyone, even if they don't treat you well, and to never give up, even when times are tough and seems like nothing is possible. My soccer coach Beth is a role model for me beacause she is very nice, encouraging, and willing to help when anyone needs it.
ReplyDelete-Sam- I think that Jimmy Valvano was and still is an inspiring person because in his speech he showed the many virtues that he lives by. He had a good heart and he established the foundation for a simple reason, he wanted others to survive cancer, not himself. He knew that he would not survive his type of cancer but he took the time and effort to make this foundation for other people so that he others may have a chance. I do have a philosophy on life and it is that everything you do, do with purpose and quality. If you aren’t doing something on purpose then it is a waste of your time. And when something isn’t done right the first time then why even bother doing it? One person that inspires me to be a better person is all the people who do random acts of kindness, like when you go the candy store and you don’t have enough money, the man behind you covers the deficit. Random acts of kindness are just what makes a person’s day. These people possess the qualities of caring, when you care for someone else you are not being selfish and you are not just thinking about yourself. These people also possess the ability to show compassion for other people. The finial qualities that these people possess are treating all people equally, even if you don’t like a certain person and maybe they don’t like you back. But you are still nice to them and I think that Jimmy V. did these very well to all people.
ReplyDeleteMckai- I think that his goal in life was to be a good basket not just great , but the best coach in the world. mine is to go to the air force academy in colorado graduate and then spend 20 years in the air force. Travis Bastrana is some one I admire because he is willing to make the impossible possible
ReplyDeletewelles- i think that Jimmy V is a great role modle for kids and adults. my mom inspiers me to be a better person because she incuriging and nice. my mom is always helpful, caring, and nice. she is responcible, a good role modle for me.
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