In addition to clothing, the children were also given access to haircuts and eye exams.
MESQUITE, Texas — NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal took 20 students from the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Dallas metropolitan area on a shopping spree at JCPenney on Tuesday, July 9.
The department store and Shack partnered to provide each student with a $500 gift card and an hour of shopping to help them buy all the items they need for back-to-school, including clothes, shoes, and haircuts.
“The Boys & Girls Club means a lot to me. JCPenney means a lot to me. It’s where my mom always bought my clothes,” O’Neill said at the event. “You guys are trying to give me all the credit, but it’s really JCPenney. They do so much of this, the things you see and the things you don’t see.”
The shopping event, held at JCPenney’s 6000 Town East Mall in Mesquite, Texas, also highlighted the JCPenney Communities Foundation’s strategic investments in youth-serving charities, including:
$100,000 in second-year sponsorship of the Walking Classroom Initiative, 75 Walk Kits donated to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Dallas, and $15,000 in sponsorship from JCPenney for the Walking Classroom after-school program in 2024-2025
“You always have to give back to your community,” O’Neill said. “There’s always people in need. I was always one of those kids in need. There was always people who were willing to give of their time or money.”
But giving back to the community isn’t Shaq’s only motivation for hosting events like this one — the NBA legend also credits his mother as a key component in his community-driven philanthropy.
“I’m a mama’s girl and I love making my mommy happy,” O’Neal explained, “so when I do something like this, even though I never expected my mom to be watching, I get the most amazing messages like, ‘Baby, you’re such a good girl. I appreciate it.'”
Shaq is no stranger to the North Texas community: Property records show O’Neal bought a home in Carrollton in 2022, and then later purchased a 4,670-square-foot home in Rockwall County, and his real estate portfolio has expanded since then.
He was recently spotted at the Walmart in Rockwall, posing for photos with fans and local residents in between shopping sprees.
