Pahokee, FL-- Willie E. Gary,
prominent trial attorney and chairman of the
Black Family Channel, recently visited students
at Pahokee High School in Pahokee, Florida, to
congratulate the school’s state championship
football team, the Blue Devils, and to motivate
students to strive for academic excellence.
Gary was accompanied by his
wife, Gloria, and his sons, Kobie, and Kenneth,
president and CEO of the Gary Foundation, as he
addressed 600 students and faculty at Pahokee
High School. Positive energy filled the air as
the audience listened to Gary’s life story and
his words of encouragement. Gary challenged the
children to pursue their educational goals,
despite obstacles.
The school’s football team
was especially excited about Gary’s visit. Coach
Leroy Foster and the state champions “Blue
Devils,” were presented with a $15,000 check
from the Gary Foundation, to pay for the much
anticipated championship rings. Students cheered
as each team member was introduced and both
Willie Gary and Kenneth Gary presented the rings
and congratulated them on a job well done.
During the event, Gary
promised to provide one student at Pahokee High
School with a full “Presidential” Scholarship to
Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina. The
deserving student will be identified later in
the academic year.
“These
talented young men deserve to be recognized for
working so hard to attain this goal of winning
the championship title,” said Gary. “My
intention today was to congratulate them, and to
motivate all the students to make good decisions
and to believe in themselves,” said Gary.
“Hopefully, my story and my life touched the
lives of these boys and girls and inspired them
to finish high school and continue on to
college.”
Gary, who is best known in
legal circles as “The Giant Killer,” is noted
for taking on some of America’s most powerful
companies--winning billions of dollars in
verdicts and settlements on behalf of his
clients. Gary is also the Chairman of the Black
Family Channel, America’s only minority owned
and operated, 24-hour cable network. Known for
his philanthropic endeavors, he and his wife,
Dr. Gloria Gary, founded The Gary Foundation,
which provides college scholarships to at-risk
students who wish to attend college. The Gary’s
have donated millions of dollars to help
Historically Black Colleges and Universities –
including $10 million to his alma mater Shaw
University in Raleigh, North Carolina.
