Steph Curry, one of the NBA’s highest earners, and his wife Ayesha are continuing their efforts to support the Oakland youth. Last year, the couple announced that through their charity “Eat. Learn. Play,” they aim to raise $50 million for the schools in Oakland Unified School District over the next three years. Then after Steph agreed to a one-year extension with the Warriors, they made another announcement about their efforts to bridge the literacy gap in the area. But that is not all.

Through the ‘Eat. Learn. Play Foundation’, Stephen and his wife Ayesha Curry have placed literacy at the forefront, providing quality resources to those in need for the last five years. Now, through a major sporting event, the power couple aims to build upon their goal further and target more schools than ever before.

Ayesha and Steph have managed to raise over $11 million that will go into supporting the Oakland youth, i.e. almost 10,000 elementary school students who fall behind in reading. However, that’s not the end of it. Through the 5th Annual Workday Charity Classic Golf Tournament, the couple aims to add at least $2 million to the existing budget. With the sponsor of the event, Workday, handling the costs of the tournament, all the money raised will be donated to community programs in Oakland to help kids under the foundation’s umbrella.

“It means everything,” Ayesha Curry told NBC when talking about their initiative. “We’re parents ourselves. We have 4 little ones. No parent should have to feel like they can’t help their child with something as simple as reading. So, for us to be able to combine all these amazing community partners and be able to help get these kids reading and excited about reading, I think it’s the best.”

Raising the $2 million target via the golf tournament is not an easy task. Fortunately, being an avid golfer himself along with dominating on the basketball court, Stephen Curry brings lots of star power with his brand name. In a scenario where that wasn’t enough, the NBA legend has some help, as 2x Super Bowl Champion Peyton Manning and soccer legend Brandi Chastain also joined the event to attract donors.

Both Ayesha and Stephen Curry have experience in raising money through golf tournaments. In the first three similar charity events that the couple hosted, they had managed to raise over $6 million. The 4th Annual Workday Charity Classic, held last year at the Stanford Golf Course, included events from an 18-hole Shamble to a $1 Million Challenge for Charity! Musician Kelley James was called in to entertain guests, Warriors emcee Franco Finn hosted the live auction, and Ayesha Curry took the BBQ duties!

Acknowledging the growing stature of the event, Chris Helfrich the Eat.Learn.Play. CEO said, “This event gets better and better every year. This event has grown as the foundation has grown to the point where now it’s a star-studded event.”

According to the foundation’s website over the last four years, it has raised over $47 million to support its various programs for kids and their families in Oakland, delivering over 25 million meals. Launched in 2019, it has also refurbished 12 play areas and invested $6 million in literacy programs.

Speaking on the role of his foundation and the golf charity event, Steph Curry said, “We’ve tried to set up a model that where the dollars that come in have maximum impact in the community in our adopted home of Oakland. People see it. People are responding to it. And it means a lot that they trust us to be out here and do it.” Ayesha and Steph Curry’s efforts show how they are willing to give back to the community. This was highlighted after the NBA star agreed to a new one-year, $62.6 million contract extension with the Warriors on Thursday (30 August).

Shortly after this announcement, the Currys announced that they have pledged $25 million over the next five years for a literacy program that will provide tutoring sessions to students in Oakland schools, in order to bridge the literacy gap.

According to AP, Ayesha Curry talked about the latest pledge saying, “What’s interesting is it’s never been a one and done, and we’ve always slow rolled things out because we love to build a model that kind of proves itself and can stand on its own.”

Meanwhile, the Olympic gold medalist, Steph Curry is not only investing money to help the Oakland kids, but taking out time to teach them golf.

Steph Curry teaches golf to Oakland school children

While Curry’s prowess on a basketball court is well known, when it comes to golf he is no slouch on the greens. A golf aficionado since 10, Curry’s ‘hole in one’ shot at last year’s American Century Championship went viral as he eventually won the tournament.

Curry harbors ambitions of going pro once he retires from the NBA, but for now, he is keen on passing his golfing skills to children from Oakland schools.

He spent the Thursday teaching golf to children from Burckhalter Elementary School in Oakland. He told them about the importance of keeping an eye on the ball to make solid contact and not worry about taking out a chunk of the grass in the process.

At the Stanford Golf Course, Curry displayed his golfing skills with his foundation helping to revamp many play areas for Oakland schools. The 4-time NBA champion is keen to give back to the community and his latest steps and pledge highlight his commitment to the cause.

Before you go, remember to check out this crossover between BG12 and Georgia Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr.