Zags tour Ronald McDonald House, see firsthand impact of CCF assist program | SWX RightNow
SPOKANE, Wash. — At the Ronald McDonald House in Spokane Wednesday night, five Gonzaga Bulldogs got a firsthand look at how their assists on the court led to positive impacts away from it.
When Nolan Hickman, Julian Strawther, Rasir Bolton, Malachi Smith, and Hunter Sallis deliver an assist to one of their teammates this season, it helps out the Community Cancer Fund.
This season, these five Bulldogs are lending their name, image and likeness (NIL) to a program with the Community Cancer Fund titled “CCF Assists.” When one of these players makes an assist in game, money is pledged to the fund in their name.
A portion of that money goes to the Ronald McDonald House, where families with children receiving medical care can stay free of charge. Wednesday night, the five Bulldogs spent the evening at the house, touring the facility and seeing how the families staying there live, sometimes for months at a time.
“Having cancer affect my own life it’s something I was super happy to be a part of,” said Strawther, who lost his mother at a young age to breast cancer, “It’s an opportunity we all kind of jumped on.”
After their tour, the Zags spent a few hours in the kitchen, slicing and serving up pizza, and taking pictures with families.
“Happy that the Gonzaga team could come over and do that for us, that was so cool,” said Buddy Cultee, whose family is staying at the house while their infant son receives treatment, “My daughter plays basketball so she was in awe. That was awesome.”
The smile on his daughter’s face as she poses for pictures with these celebrities of Spokane says it all.
“I think it’s so cool,” Logan Webbenhurst, Development Officer of the Ronald McDonald House said, “especially for some of these little kids. To see who they think are superstars right here feeding them pizza. That’s a dream come true for so many kids.”
Through the first 14 games of the season, the five Zags participating in the assists program have raised $26,700 thanks to 140 total assists between the players. Nolan Hickman is responsible for a team-leading 53 of those.
“I try to go into every game not having an agenda, of course,” Hickman says, “but I definitely do have that type of idea in the back of my head.”
Those familiar with NIL deals know that players are normally paid for lending their name to certain programs. These players aren’t paid for participating in the CCF assists program. Instead, they’re more than happy to lend their name to a great cause.
“I know how hard it is to have someone that you love suffering from cancer,” Strawther says, “Just to be a beacon of light, maybe bring a smile to somebody’s face when they’re going through something hard, that means the world to me and it means the world to all the guys that are here.”