«

»

Matt Barnes, Gloria Govan Are Class Acts At Annual Athletes vs Cancer Charity Event

Los Angeles Lakers forward Matt Barnes and fiancée Gloria Govan hosted the 3rd Annual Athletes vs.Cancer Celebrity Golf Tournament and Gala at the Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA.

After a full day on the links with celebrity participants including Barnes’ team mates Derek Fisher, Ron Artest, and Kobe Bryant, the couple hosted a garden party for family and friends. Guests included former major leaguer players Scott Erickson and Royce Clayton, former NFL linebacker Willie McGinest, NBA great Jamaal Wilkes, NBA player Damien Wilkins, ESPN’s Mike Wilbon, comedian Joe Torry, and the Basketball Wives LA cast.

Matt and Gloria

Barnes founded Athletes vs. Cancer after his mother, Ann, succumbed to cancer in 2007.

“Off the court,” said Matt, “I’m a father, I’m a fiancé, and I really care passionately about my foundation and try to touch peoples lives.”

Gloria Govan

Gloria Govan

Cancer has touched the Govan family as well. Gloria shared that her mother is a breast cancer survivor and her father is currently battling prostate cancer.

I asked her to speak on the significance of the event to her family and she said, “Everyone knows somebody that has passed away of cancer, or has cancer, or knows somebody, but when it hits home it becomes personal.” “That’s the time when people dive in,” she said, “but it shouldn’t be that way.” “Cancer has no gender, no race, no age, and it can hit anyone at anytime.”

Their commitment to cancer awareness was reflected in the evenings details, especially the cancer survivors that attended as honored guests. The garden was arranged beautifully and there was plenty of food and entertainment, including performances by Jon B., DJ Quik, and a fashion show featuring Matt’s clothing line.

DJ Quik

DJ Quik

Laura Govan

Gloria’s sister Laura Govan was there in support…

Jackie Christie, Imani Showalter, and Draya Michele

…as were their Basketball Wives LA cast mates Jackie Christie, Imani Showalter, and Draya Michele. This event was significant to Jackie in that her mother has been diagnosed with terminal cancer.

Scott Erickson and Royce Clayton


Willie McGinest expressed how proud he was of Matt and his efforts in support of cancer, and took a moment to speak with the media about football returning to Los Angeles, his involvement, and how “LA’s been empty without a football team and they miss it.”

It was a fantastic evening and Matt and Gloria should be proud.

Tipping my fedora to Rob and BlackSportsOnline.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>