Ryan Gomes (photo. HFHH)

The one storyline that never gets covered enough in our pages, or by the media in general, is the charity work that NBA stars put in off the court. Recently, ESPN profiled Carlos and CeCe Boozer’s efforts to battle sickle cell anemia, a disease that afflicts one of their own children.

And just as the Worldwide Leader praised Boozer, we’d be remiss if we didn’t shine a spotlight on what Ryan Gomes is trying to do across the country. Gomes wrote a letter to all Division I Men’s and Women’s basketball coaches, athletic trainers and other hoops staffers, trying to raise money to get AED’s (automated external defibrillators) in every single one of their gyms. Gomes isn’t just a sponsor for this project. He started this foundation.

Far too many young basketball players die each and every year from Sudden Cardiac Arrest. The numbers are staggering – between 7,000-10,000 young people every year. And studies have shown that 74% of those who suffer from SCA could have survived if they were properly treated with an AED device within 3-5 minutes.

Please visit www.hoopsforhearthealth.org for more information, where you can donate to Gomes’ cause as well.