UPS and the Muhammad Ali Center held a Monday morning press conference to announce a $500,000 gift to fund education initiatives such as UCrew, Generation Ali and Character Education Program.
The grant was announced Monday morning at the Ali Center, just days after the three-time heavyweight boxing champion, humanitarian, and Louisville-born icon died at the age of 74.
Officials acknowledged that the UPS gift was not a consideration, until after Ali’s death.
Donald Lassere, the center’s president and CEO, took the opportunity at perhaps the first major public Ali-related gathering since his memorial service June 10. “I am honored to be the steward of Muhammad Ali’s legacy,” he said, calling the donation a sign that “the outpouring of love continues.”
The center will use the funds to shore up its already extensive educational programming, with the gift intended to support the center’s current initiatives that include Generation Ali and the Muhammad Ali Center Council of Students. Among other things, the Ali Center develops curricula that are available to schools to promote the principles that guided Ali’s life.
Since Ali’s passing “the center has been overwhelmed by immense love and generosity from all over the world,” said Lassere, adding that “we are wholeheartedly grateful for the gifts we have received. Having UPS, a global company located in our own community of Louisville, donate this generous gift to the Ali Center speaks volumes — not just for helping to preserve Muhammad Ali’s legacy through education, but also for UPS’ commitment to building strong and resilient communities around the world.”
Mayor Greg Fischer used the news conference to pay yet another tribute to Ali and noted that the city’s response to his death demonstrated “a time of love and hope that the world needed to see.”
Fischer said the UPS gift “will help keep Muhammad’s spirit alive and help further the Champ’s legacy.”
“Our people really wanted to honor The Greatest,” said Brendan Canavan, president of another UPS affiliate based in Louisville, UPS Airlines. “There are so many parallels between Ali and UPS: connecting global communities, a passion for humanitarian aid, and roots in Louisville. This gift was just the right thing to do.”
The UPS Foundation was set up in 1951 and the $500,000 will help finance these Ali Center programs:
* UCrew, which is intended to instill in students the tools necessary to conceptualize and launch a small social enterprise; produce and market a product or service; and generate profits that are used to combat social issues such as poverty and hunger.
* Generation Ali, an initiative that draws its inspiration from Ali’s six guiding principles — confidence, conviction, dedication, giving, respect, and spirituality. The program also is intended to foster a new generation of leaders to find a cause worth fighting for and, it is hoped, to transform the world in positive and compassionate ways.
* The “Creating Our Future” program, designed for middle and high school age youth, guides students to explore Ali’s principles and use them in a life plan in preparation for their futures.
* The Muhammad Ali Center Council of Students, a youth-led program consisting of a diverse group of dynamic students who participate in service work, learning projects, and leadership development.
The Muhammad Ali Center is a 501(c)3 corporation that was co-founded by Muhammad Ali and his wife, Lonnie. It opened in 2005 near Sixth and Main streets. The center offers an award-winning museum experience. For information, visit www.alicenter.org.
Reporter Sheldon S. Shafer can be reached at (502) 582-7089, or via email at [email protected].
