CHARACTER COUNTS

Devin Booker surprises Girl Scouts with $100K grant at Mercury game

Oct 14, 2021, 7:45 AM

Girl Scouts from the Arizona-Cactus Pine Council were invited to Game 2 of the Phoenix Mercury’s WNBA Finals series hoping to catch a good one.

They left with a lot more. Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker used the big game to surprise the group with a $100,000 donation, the first of five gifts Booker is handing out this season as part of his Devin Booker Starting Five campaign.

Before the game, the Girl Scouts were ushered into the team’s media area at Footprint Center, where a video of Booker announcing the gift played. Then, he popped in, in person.

The donation will help provide the group a bus that’s used to transport them to educational opportunities. The Girl Scouts did not have a bus due to vandalism and theft, according to a press release.

“I think this society is lacking inclusion when it comes to females as a whole,” Booker said in a team-produced video. “That’s been something I’m focused on since I’ve been here, supporting the Mercury and finding other ways to do it. I think this grant for the Girl Scouts is a step forward in that way.”

The Arizona-Cactus Pine Council scouts include more than 20,000 girls from communities covering 75,000 square miles in central and northern Arizona, including reservations and military installations.

“I was so excited because we have been working so hard for this granted and been keeping our fingers crossed, ” Girl Scouts Arizona-Cactus Pine Council deputy director Christina Spicer said in the video. “Now more than ever, being able to transport girls to and from programs to be able to access girl scouting is a huge need of ours.”

The 60-some Girl Scouts invited to the game also got to watch the Mercury play the Chicago Sky — and it was a good one.

Booker purchased a suite for them to watch the Mercury’s 91-86 overtime victory that tied their series up with the Sky, 1-1.

Character Counts

Runners take off after the starting gun at Pat's Run in Tempe. The race, will be run on April 13 th...

Character Counts

The 20th annual Pat’s Run set take place in Tempe on April 13

The 20th iteration of Pat's Run is set to take place in Tempe on April 13 to honor the life and legacy of Pat Tillman.

2 days ago

Follow @AZSports...

Character Counts

Bradley Beal hooked up Devin Booker fans who supported Suns in Denver

Suns fans who showed up to in Devin Booker jerseys at Ball Arena in Denver got a special gift from Bradley Beal afterward.

12 days ago

Aani Nagaiah, front row far right, is the winner among 10 finalists for the 2024 Character Counts s...

Character Counts

Arcadia senior wins 2024 Character Counts Scholarship

Arcadia's Aani Nagaiah on Wednesday night was presented as the winner of the 2024 Character Counts scholarship courtesy of Parker & Sons.

18 days ago

ASU's HBE uniforms...

Arizona Sports

Arizona State basketball fans can now rock Sun Devils’ HBE jerseys

Arizona State basketball's Honoring Black Excellence jerseys are being released to fans for the first time this month.

1 month ago

Baltimore Ravens tighe end Mark Andrews...

Character Counts

Ravens TE, diabetes advocate Mark Andrews helped woman during health scare on flight

Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark Andrews, who has Type 1 diabetes, helped a woman during a medical emergency on a flight to Arizona.

2 months ago

Benjamin Franklin High School's wrestling coach, Hayes Rollins (far right), was named as the Arizon...

David Veenstra

Benjamin Franklin High School wrestling’s Hayes Rollins named Arizona Sports Coach of the Month

Hayes Rollins, the wrestling coach at Benjamin Franklin High School, has been named the inaugural Arizona Sports Coach of the Month.

2 months ago

Devin Booker surprises Girl Scouts with $100K grant at Mercury game