Send the Elevator Down
Almost 30 years ago a young boy, age 9, dreamed of becoming a doctor. This youth was a world away from achieving this dream. Living in the Congo, there were not many opportunities but, he studied hard and excelled in school.
He was accepted to Georgetown University in the Washington DC area on a scholastic scholarship. He flew to the US from his home in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1987. The premed major had every intention of returning to the Congo as a Doctor, a promise made to his father years before.
In his 2nd year at Georgetown ,the coach took an interest in this 7 ft 2 inch junior and convinced him to try out for the basketball team. Georgetown was a major player for the national championship during the three years this young man was a member of the team. Unlike many who leave college early to try for a career in the NBA, this man, Dikembo Mutombo, finished his education. He did detour from his intended major in medicine, instead,earning degrees in Linguistics and Diplomacy. He now speaks English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and 5 African dialects.
In 1991 Dikembo was drafted by the Denver Nuggets in the 4th round. He earned a spot on the All-Star team his rookie year. He was traded to the Atlanta Hawks in 1995-96 winning Defensive Player of the Year twice. He played for the Philadelphia 76'ers, New Jersey Nets, NY Knicks and is now playing for the Houston Rockets. Dikembo has earned the admiration of sports fans and players alike, for giving his all for the game.
Mutombo also spends much of his energies helping others. In 1997, he created the Dikembe Motombo Foundation after his mother died at age 64. For Congo's national women's basketball team, he provided equipment and funding for their trip to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. To Special Olympians, he has donated his time and energy for clinics and workshops. In support of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, Mutombo, has given his voice for a series of public-service announcements, encouraging millions of Central African parents to immunize their children against the disease.
Mutombo has personally donated $15 million dollars and helped raise millions more to build the $29 million dollar Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital and Research Center, named after his mother.The 300 bed hospital will open September 2nd marking the first major hospital built in Kinshasa, Congo's capital city, in over 30 years.
"Mutombo believes that God has given him this opportunity to do great things for his country, especially in health care," says Tom Keefe, president of the International Medical Equipment Collaborative, a charity that will help to kit out the hospital once it is built. "This facility will create the most dramatic change in health-care delivery, not just in the capital, but in the country and the whole region."
At one fundraiser for the hospital, Mutombo quoted a modern African proverb to explain why he has committed so much of his life and his wealth to the welfare of others. "When you take the elevator up to reach the top, please don't forget to send the elevator back down, so that someone else can take it to the top," he said. "This is my way of sending the elevator down."
He was accepted to Georgetown University in the Washington DC area on a scholastic scholarship. He flew to the US from his home in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1987. The premed major had every intention of returning to the Congo as a Doctor, a promise made to his father years before.
In his 2nd year at Georgetown ,the coach took an interest in this 7 ft 2 inch junior and convinced him to try out for the basketball team. Georgetown was a major player for the national championship during the three years this young man was a member of the team. Unlike many who leave college early to try for a career in the NBA, this man, Dikembo Mutombo, finished his education. He did detour from his intended major in medicine, instead,earning degrees in Linguistics and Diplomacy. He now speaks English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and 5 African dialects.
In 1991 Dikembo was drafted by the Denver Nuggets in the 4th round. He earned a spot on the All-Star team his rookie year. He was traded to the Atlanta Hawks in 1995-96 winning Defensive Player of the Year twice. He played for the Philadelphia 76'ers, New Jersey Nets, NY Knicks and is now playing for the Houston Rockets. Dikembo has earned the admiration of sports fans and players alike, for giving his all for the game.
Mutombo also spends much of his energies helping others. In 1997, he created the Dikembe Motombo Foundation after his mother died at age 64. For Congo's national women's basketball team, he provided equipment and funding for their trip to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. To Special Olympians, he has donated his time and energy for clinics and workshops. In support of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, Mutombo, has given his voice for a series of public-service announcements, encouraging millions of Central African parents to immunize their children against the disease.
Mutombo has personally donated $15 million dollars and helped raise millions more to build the $29 million dollar Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital and Research Center, named after his mother.The 300 bed hospital will open September 2nd marking the first major hospital built in Kinshasa, Congo's capital city, in over 30 years.
"Mutombo believes that God has given him this opportunity to do great things for his country, especially in health care," says Tom Keefe, president of the International Medical Equipment Collaborative, a charity that will help to kit out the hospital once it is built. "This facility will create the most dramatic change in health-care delivery, not just in the capital, but in the country and the whole region."
At one fundraiser for the hospital, Mutombo quoted a modern African proverb to explain why he has committed so much of his life and his wealth to the welfare of others. "When you take the elevator up to reach the top, please don't forget to send the elevator back down, so that someone else can take it to the top," he said. "This is my way of sending the elevator down."
posted by Mddhattr at 3:01 PM
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