The Sacramento Kings are one of the many corporate partners of Mentor California. Photo courtesy of Mentor California.
The importance of mentoring goes beyond the basketball court and into every aspect of life.
As National Mentorship Month wraps up in January, many organizations hope to continue their important work alongside the NBA Foundation. Since its inception in 2020, the NBA Foundation has donated $119 million towards its overall mission to drive economic opportunity in the Black community through employment and career development by funding programs that generate successful transitions from school to meaningful employment for Black youth.
Organizations such as Mentor California and Congress Heights Arts & Culture Center believe mentorship is a solution strategy for so many aspects of life and are grateful to the NBA Foundation for their continued support.
“We use the grant money in every which way we can,” said Keyonna Jones, Founder and Executive Director of CHACC. “We have a mortgage, lights to keep on. We have programs that we have to buy supplies for, teachers that we have to pay salaries to and we have funds that we support our students with. The money goes every which way in terms of how we support our community (through our work).”
Marcus L. Strother, Executive Director of Mentor California, spoke from his first-hand experience as a mentee turned mentor, seeing its benefits pay off in his life.
“We can’t do this alone,” Strother said. “Life is a tricky game and we continue to try to be the best at it, but what we know is that we are better together.”
With a keen focus on developing mentors, providing career advice and community building, these organizations break down how the NBA Foundation aligns with their values and what impact they hope to make in the mentoring space.
Relationship with the NBA Foundation
When it comes to building a professional relationship, values have to be aligned.
For Mentor California, that value was inclusivity. The organization serves young people ensuring children have the supportive relationships they need to grow and develop into thriving, productive and engaging adults. Some of their partners for this mission include: the Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State Valkyries, Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors, LA Sparks and NBA Foundation.
“There are so many ways to be involved in the NBA that have nothing to do with you playing on the court, but it still makes you part of the team,” Strother said. “It still makes you a champion in many ways, because you are a part of what is helping this entire business move.”
Teams like the Kings and Warriors have connected young people in their communities to more opportunities and exposed them to new spaces.
On Jan. 18, 2025, Mentor California collaborated with the Warriors to introduce mentees to Ronnie Singh — who is heavily involved in the creation of the NBA 2K video game. He showcased the pathways to getting into the gaming industry.
One of the purposes of mentorship and the usage of resources provided by Mentor California is to introduce the youth to a workforce space that isn’t often given to them, Strother said.
Inclusivity means allowing mentors to feel welcomed in this space and having an opportunity to share the experiences they’ve had throughout their personal and professional lives.
“At Mentor California, we want all young people to understand that our home is their home,” Strother said. “Our work is their work and we are here not only to champion them, but to be champions for them.”
Strother said Mentor California plans to use the grants to aid their restoration retreats.
Valuing the Art Space
Members of the CHACC organization gather around in the Creative School. Photo courtesy of CHACC.
In many cases, sports like basketball are a form of art. For CHACC, that art is prevalent in their mentorship work within the community.
“We believe that art saves lives,” Jones said. “It’s a conduit to a lot of things in the world.”
CHACC wants to share that lesson with their community in Washington D.C., but also provide a safe space for young kids to come in and be able to express their creativity. CHACC believes in building long-lasting relationships within the community to bridge the gap and support mentorship.
“We do a lot of collaborations to continue the work that we do,” Jones said. “By connecting with the folks in the neighborhood, we’re already kind of working together, so it makes it easy.”
Jones said being in-person definitely helps advance building relationships. Within the last year, CHACC was able to expand and open its retail store in Sycamore and Oak about five minutes away from the art gallery.
Making a real impact and changing lives is one of their continued goals.
“We want people to remember us and say, ‘Oh we got that from the center. That was an experience we had at the art gallery,’” Jones said. “We want to be a reflection of what we want to see in the world to inspire folks to step in a space of mentorship.”
“My favorite quote is, ‘If you want to go far, you go together. If you want to go fast, you go alone.’ Mentorship is definitely part of that understanding and you have to be linked up to handle things.”
You can learn about the NBA Foundation and how they continue to make an impact here.
