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The Torii Hunter Project

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Steve

On December 9, 2008, Heart of a Champion announced the launch of a new initiative with Major League Baseball star, Torii Hunter of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. In a press conference held at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, site of baseball's Winter Meetings, the Torii Hunter Project was announced to the media.

The Project will provide the Heart of a Champion program to over 6,000 students in Anaheim, CA, Pine Bluff, AR, Minneapolis, MN and Las Vegas, NV, and will make available a minimum of 100 college scholarships to students in these areas. The four-year project will begin in 2009, and will be operated by the Heart of a Champion Foundation.

“By combining the two areas in this initiative, Torii will be able to help secondary school students be better prepared for the future through effective character training; then he will provide a means for them to further their academic pursuits by helping them attend college,” said Steve Riach, Heart of a Champion Founder and Board Chairman. “It is a comprehensive approach to giving students the opportunity to elevate their lives. We are excited to partner with Torii.”

“The way I grew up was pretty tough,” said Torii Hunter. “I vowed to myself, that if I ever got the opportunity to help anybody that I was going to do it. That's one of the reasons why I'm so passionate about helping kids. Seeing the difference I can make in somebody's life is powerful. I'm glad that I can in some small way give back, because I feel blessed to be where I'm at.”

Joining Torii and Steve at the announcement, was tennis star, Andre Agassi, whose Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy will be a beneficiary of the initiative.

“We are grateful that Torii Hunter has selected Agassi Prep as a recipient of this significant scholarship gift," said Agassi. Torii Hunter clearly shares our belief that with education, there is hope.”


To learn more about Heart of a Champion's partnership with Torii Hunter and the Torii Hunter Project, visit the project's dedicated website, ToriiHunterProject.com

 

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