Stephen Curry Talks 2974 NFT Collection, Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation – ‘This Is What It’s About’
Four-time NBA champion Stephen Curry isn’t about building his legacy on the field. Through community efforts, he grows and uplifts the youth of Oakland, California.
Last weekend was the Golden State Warriors point guard, in collaboration with his and his wife Ayesha Curryhis non-profit organization Eat. Learn. Play. and NFT marketplace FTX, hosted a once-in-a-lifetime experience: collection holders of his 2,974 NFT Collection met the basketball legend.
After Curry’s smashing of Ray Allenhis career high for 3-point shots on December 14, 2021, he released a surprise NFT drop a few days later to commemorate the event. The 2974 NFT Collection consists of a photo of every moment Curry made the 3-pointer so fans can own a piece of the legacy.
In a fantastic move, 100% of the profits collected from the NFT sale went to Eat. Learn. Play. and the Oakland community. According to a press release, the 2974 Collection has since generated over $4.4 million in trade volume since its launch eight months ago.
Steph Curry @2974Collection NFT’s final sale price is $17,220 🏀
The winner will attend Curry’s birthday party, play basketball with the 4x champion, and 100% of the proceeds will go to his @eatlearnplay foundation. pic.twitter.com/lQtMmNFPV3
— Goldin (@GoldinCo) 26 June 2022
“From the very beginning, Stephen was adamant that all the funds raised through 2,974 NFTs go directly to impacting the community through ELP,” the foundation’s CEO Christopher Helfrich says BLACK ENTERPRISE. “And not just in the initial sale, there’s a percentage of every resale forever of these NFTs that support ELP. That’s going to provide us with incredible resources for the infinite future.”
After learning how many children depend on the school breakfast and lunch programs, the team at ELP, along with the Oakland Unified School District and the local Alameda Food Bank, jumped at the chance to distribute meals and fulfill the first pillar of their mission.
According to Curry, the pandemic response has been the most successful aspect of the ELP launch. Since July 2019, the foundation has helped distribute over 25 million meals to Oakland, where 38% of children are food insecure.
“The other two pillars are not far behind in terms of creating a big footprint in our community with literacy and obviously creating safe spaces to play, which we have done,” Curry says BLACK ENTERPRISE. “I think [we’ve done] seven or eight court renovations in different communities and created programs in those community centers to support the coaches, the teachers and the kids.”
Recently, Eat. Learn. Play. helped make and install 150″Lilleby libraries” around Oakland to encourage childhood literacy for underserved minority communities as part of the “Learn” pillar. ELP hopes to increase reading skills for children in third grade; a critical indicator of high school graduation and future career success, says Helfrich.
According to it ELP websiteonly 15.4% of black students and 12.5% of Latino elementary students are reading on grade level.
We recently launched our newest initiative—#EatLearnPlay Little Town Libraries – to encourage children to read by making it accessible, fun and inspiring! We hope that our free, book-sharing libraries will help plant the seeds needed to continue cultivating a culture of literacy.📖 pic.twitter.com/pljBpV2Iv9
– Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation (@eatlearnplay) 7 April 2022
As part of Curry’s 34-year celebration28 of the holders of the 2,974 NFT Collection from around the world were invited to meet and shoot rings with the NBA star, each owner of an NFT image symbolizing the 28 3-pointers he has made throughout his career during games on his birthday on March 14 .
“This is what it’s all about,” Curry began his speech to the congregants, following a tour of the Golden State Warriors’ old training ground in Oakland. “It means the world … Even a couple of years ago I had no idea this would be a possibility. [This was] a moment to make society change. What has come out of it has been amazing to see. ELP has been a very special place for me and Ayesha to impact the greater Bay Area, but especially Oakland, around the three pillars of a healthy childhood. We are now the whole village supporting the next generation of talent.”
In addition to playing basketball with the greatest 3-point shooter of all time, NFT holders got a chance to put in a volunteer shift with Curry’s nonprofit organization at the Alameda Food Bank, packing up produce and stocking up The ELP bus with new books while you catch up on the shooting star.
ELP hopes one day to expand across the country, but as a young non-profit organization, things have taken off faster than imaginable. Helfrich revealed that the organization has begun making significant investments in lower-income communities in Columbus, Ohio, which they aim to be a part of in the next decade. But if they can serve as inspiration for other organizations, that will be enough for the 3-year-old foundation.
“If we can show other communities that we have a model that works, we would like to see buses in communities across the country where there is a great need. We approach this work without ego, says Helfrich.
“For these kids, that experience of, ‘Oh my God, Ayesha and Stephen are giving me this as a gift, they care about me,’ I think there’s something profound about that impact,” he says. “We’re trying to make sure we’re giving Oakland kids the best.”
