# Perseverance: Kier "Junior" Spates is changing how we view people with Sickle Cell.

An episode of [Money Making Conversations Master Class](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1264705641), 11 Sep 2024, 24 min.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/b1db7263-d1a3-4d00-8976-af62012aab44/a540bb05-e8a2-4c89-a760-b1e301496cd3/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=35a10561-3e1b-4d05-a529-af62012aab6a

Listen and subscribe to Money Making Conversations on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, www.moneymakingconversations.com/subscribe/ or wherever you listen to podcasts. New Money Making Conversations episodes drop daily. I want to alert you, so you don’t miss out on expert analysis and insider perspectives from my guests who provide tips that can help you uplift the community, improve your financial planning, motivation, or advice on how to be a successful entrepreneur. Keep winning! Two-time Emmy and Three-time NAACP Image Award-winning television Executive Producer Rushion McDonald interviewed Kier "Junior" Spates. Best known for his role on The Steve Harvey Morning Show. The conversation focuses on Junior's personal battle with sickle cell disease, his nonprofit Keir's Hope Foundation, his podcast Living Your Life, and his mission to change perceptions about sickle cell through education, advocacy, and inspiration. This interview is not just about success in entertainment. It is about overcoming a life-threatening diagnosis, refusing to accept limitations, and using personal experiences to create hope for others. About Kier "Junior" Spates Junior is known for: • Co-hosting The Steve Harvey Morning Show • Stand-up comedy • Podcasting • Philanthropic work • Sickle cell advocacy However, behind his public success is a lifelong battle with: Sickle Cell Disease A condition doctors diagnosed when he was seven years old. Purpose of the Interview The interview sought to: • Raise awareness about sickle cell disease. • Discuss J's Hope Foundation. • Highlight healthcare inequalities faced by sickle cell patients. • Inspire others to overcome adversity. • Encourage people to pursue their purpose regardless of limitations. • Share resources available to families affected by sickle cell. The Diagnosis That Changed Everything Junior revealed that he was diagnosed with sickle cell disease at: Seven Years Old Doctors reportedly told his parents something devastating: He may not live past age eleven. For his family, the diagnosis was terrifying. His childhood consisted of: • Frequent hospital visits • Pain episodes • Medical treatments • Uncertainty about the future Despite this grim prediction, Junior refused to accept that sickle cell would define or limit his life. Turning Pain Into Motivation Instead of becoming discouraged, Junior used the prediction as motivation. He made a personal decision: "I wasn't going to let sickle cell determine how I lived." He pursued activities many believed would be difficult for someone with his condition, including: • Football • Basketball • Track and field His goal was simple: Prove that sickle cell could not stop his dreams. When Ignorance Changed His Future One of the most powerful moments in the interview involved his high school football career. During his senior year, a team doctor learned he had sickle cell disease and immediately removed him from participation. Junior explained that: • Scholarships were on the line. • He had invested years in the program. • No evaluation was conducted. • No accommodations were discussed. The response was simply: "Take him off the team." This experience became a turning point. A Promise to Himself After losing that opportunity, Junior made a personal commitment: "I would never let sickle cell take another dream from me." That promise eventually led him to advocacy and nonprofit work. Joining The Steve Harvey Morning Show Junior's entertainment career expanded significantly after his connection with: Steve Harvey The relationship developed through stand-up comedy opportunities before eventually evolving into a position on: The Steve Harvey Morning Show Junior credits Steve Harvey and the show's leadership for teaching him: • Business • Branding • Radio • Professional development The platform gave him a national audience and expanded his ability to advocate for sickle cell awareness. The Birth of J's Hope…

## Transcript

[0:05] Speaker 1: Welcome to the show. I am Rashawn McDonald, the host
[0:07] Speaker 1: of Money Making Conversations Masterclass, where we encourage people to
[0:11] Speaker 1: stop reading other people's success stories and start planning their own.
[0:16] Speaker 1: Listen up as I interview entrepreneurs from around the country,
[0:19] Speaker 1: talk to celebrities and ask them how they are running
[0:22] Speaker 1: their companies and speak with nonprofits who are making a
[0:25] Speaker 1: difference in their local communities. Now sit back and listen
[0:29] Speaker 1: as we unlock the secrets to their success on Money
[0:32] Speaker 1: Making Conversations Masterclass. Welcome to Money Making Conversations Masterclass. I'm
[0:38] Speaker 1: your host of the show, Rashawn McDonald. We're down here
[0:40] Speaker 1: in Atlanta to meet the one and only Keir Jr. Spates,
[0:44] Speaker 1: one of the stars of the popular radio show called
[0:48] Speaker 1: Steve Harvey Morning Show. Here's a plan down here, a
[0:51] Speaker 1: plan to change the lives of people who are affected
[0:53] Speaker 1: by sickle cell disease. He has the disease. but he
[0:57] Speaker 1: wants to let you know it can't stop you from dreaming.
[1:00] Speaker 1: He has a podcast. He has a foundation called Kier's Hope.
[1:03] Speaker 1: Now you'll be able to hear his story and why
[1:06] Speaker 1: he's changing the game and why the community is being
[1:09] Speaker 1: impacted by his personal efforts. Please don't go anywhere. We're
[1:13] Speaker 1: about to meet the one and only Kier Junior Spates.
[1:16] Speaker 2: I'm Kier Junior Spates, founder of Kier's Hope Foundation.
[1:20] Speaker 1: I'm here in Atlanta, Georgia with the one and only
[1:23] Speaker 1: Kier Junior. Junior Spates. How you doing, my brother?
[1:25] Speaker 3: Good, brother.
[1:26] Speaker 2: How you doing, man?
[1:26] Speaker 1: I know you get up early, man.
[1:27] Speaker 2: Yeah, dude.
[1:28] Speaker 1: I get up, man. Steve Harvey Morning Show.
[1:29] Speaker 2: Every morning, dude.
[1:31] Speaker 1: Well, good. How does it feel to be a part
[1:33] Speaker 1: of an engine like that that has been, it changes
[1:36] Speaker 1: the community, and you're also personally changing the community. Tell
[1:39] Speaker 1: us your backstory about the Steve Harvey Morning Show.
[1:42] Speaker 2: You know, I met Steve in L.A. back in 2001.
[1:48] Speaker 2: And then I got a phone call from, saying, hey,
[1:51] Speaker 2: you want to go on a road with Steve in 2009.
[1:54] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[1:55] Speaker 2: Then went down to Miami, opened up for him, got
[1:57] Speaker 2: another phone call. Hey, you doing anything this weekend? Want
[2:00] Speaker 2: to go to Philly? And I was trying to figure out,
[2:02] Speaker 2: how come they keep calling? Who all said no to
[2:05] Speaker 2: find me, who was not famous, nobody, just a comedian?
[2:08] Speaker 2: I know. A lot of people had to be in
[2:10] Speaker 2: the way before he could get to me.
[2:11] Speaker 1: Right.
[2:11] Speaker 2: But I'm so glad he did find me.
[2:13] Speaker 3: Mr.
[2:13] Speaker 2: Harvey is a very powerful person. Influenced on a lot
[2:19] Speaker 2: of young comedians, including myself. So then I get a call, 2011. Hey, man,
[2:26] Speaker 2: I want to talk to you about changing not just
[2:30] Speaker 2: your life, not just your career, but your life.
[2:32] Speaker 1: Right.
[2:33] Speaker 2: And that call came from Sean McDonald. I'll never forget
[2:37] Speaker 2: that day, man. And it was just so much to learn.
[2:40] Speaker 2: I did not know a lot of the things that
[2:43] Speaker 2: I did not know as a comedian. Because I wasn't
[2:46] Speaker 2: taught the right way.
[2:47] Speaker 1: Right.
[2:47] Speaker 2: And all I was just really working off of was
[2:49] Speaker 2: pure talent.
[2:50] Speaker 1: Right.
[2:51] Speaker 2: That's all I had. You know, now I learned the
[2:54] Speaker 2: actual business of comedy. Mm-hmm. The business of radio.
[2:58] Speaker 3: Right.
[2:58] Speaker 2: And then you put all those things together, and you
[3:01] Speaker 2: have a disease, and Mr. Harvey, and I said, can't
[3:04] Speaker 2: sit on my show and not have a cause.
[3:06] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[3:06] Speaker 2: And that's how I started my foundation, Cure's Hope.
[3:09] Speaker 1: Cure's Hope.
[3:09] Speaker 3: Yes, sir.
[3:10] Speaker 1: It was a foundation that you met him in 2001. Mm-hmm.
[3:14] Speaker 1: On the road with him in 2009. What year did
[3:17] Speaker 1: you start your foundation? 2012.
[3:19] Speaker 2: 2012. No, 2013.
[3:21] Speaker 1: 2013. And that was his cause. He said sitting on
[3:27] Speaker 1: the radio show was a cause for the community.
[3:29] Speaker 2: For the community.
[3:30] Speaker 1: But you had a bigger cause because you actually have
[3:32] Speaker 1: sickle cell disease.
[3:33] Speaker 2: Yes. You know, the thing about that, man, is they
[3:39] Speaker 2: told me at seven that it was over. You know,
[3:42] Speaker 2: my parents didn't know.
[3:43] Speaker 1: They said, over, what do you mean?
[3:45] Speaker 2: Like, my life was over. I'm going to die.
[3:47] Speaker 1: At seven? At seven.
[3:48] Speaker 2: They told me at seven that I only had to
[3:50] Speaker 2: live until 11 years old. And, you know, I think
[3:53] Speaker 2: about the pressure that it puts on my parents because
[3:57] Speaker 2: they really thought my son, my firstborn son, won't make
[4:01] Speaker 2: it past 11 years old. He's already seven. And I
[4:04] Speaker 2: was only diagnosed at seven. So, I mean, that's seven
[4:06] Speaker 2: years of my parents not knowing what is actually wrong
[4:08] Speaker 2: with my child.
[4:09] Speaker 1: Right.
[4:10] Speaker 2: And, you know, it's crazy, man.
[4:11] Speaker 1: So, in and out of the hospital?
[4:13] Speaker 2: In and out of the hospital. Really, really right after
[4:18] Speaker 2: about when I was diagnosed, they understood. And then because
[4:21] Speaker 2: I was so active as a child, I went back in,
[4:24] Speaker 2: back out, in and out of the hospital.
[4:26] Speaker 1: Right.
[4:26] Speaker 2: So, you know, probably in a year, I probably would
[4:28] Speaker 2: have like four or five visits. That's extremely high.
[4:32] Speaker 3: Wow.
[4:33] Speaker 2: You know, for a kid.
[4:35] Speaker 3: Mm-hmm.
[4:36] Speaker 2: You know, that's a lot of medication you put inside
[4:38] Speaker 2: of a kid. Mm-hmm. And so that got me to
[4:41] Speaker 2: thinking about and really find out who all out here
[4:45] Speaker 2: has sickle cell.
[4:46] Speaker 1: Right.
[4:47] Speaker 2: Because at my school, I'm the only one I know.
[4:49] Speaker 1: But the sickle cell community.
[4:50] Speaker 2: Yes.
[4:50] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[4:51] Speaker 2: You know, when I was in school, I was the
[4:53] Speaker 2: only one that I knew had sickle cell.
[4:54] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[4:55] Speaker 2: But I wanted to find out who's all into this
[4:59] Speaker 2: community and who are doing the positive things.
[5:01] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[5:02] Speaker 2: In this community? You know, who are the people who
[5:05] Speaker 2: are all out here with 6-0 just like me, but
[5:08] Speaker 2: don't believe that their life is over because they got
[5:10] Speaker 2: diagnosed with something that could kill them?
[5:13] Speaker 1: Right.
[5:13] Speaker 2: You know? And so I took that 11 years old
[5:18] Speaker 2: real personal.
[5:19] Speaker 3: Right.
[5:20] Speaker 2: You know, I made that my number, number 11. I
[5:22] Speaker 2: was playing sports.
[5:23] Speaker 1: So you played athletics.
[5:25] Speaker 2: I played athletics. I played football. I played basketball. Ran track.
[5:28] Speaker 2: And they told me that you weren't going to live
[5:31] Speaker 2: past 11. So I took that personal, that my life
[5:35] Speaker 2: can be just as great as anyone else's with anything
[5:39] Speaker 2: just because I have sickle cell and you stereotype me
[5:42] Speaker 2: as if I have to go with 11 years old.
[5:43] Speaker 2: I didn't want to die at 11. Nobody does. Right.
[5:46] Speaker 2: And so that was a hard thing for me to accept.
[5:48] Speaker 2: So I took it personal.
[5:49] Speaker 3: Right.
[5:49] Speaker 2: I wanted to be the best football player I could be.
[5:51] Speaker 2: I wanted to be the best basketball player I could be.
[5:54] Speaker 2: I want to show you on the track, I'm going
[5:55] Speaker 2: to show you how fast people with sickle cell really are.
[5:58] Speaker 1: But the ignorance of sickle cell. Yes. sidetracked your sports career.
[6:04] Speaker 2: It did.
[6:04] Speaker 1: Talk to us.
[6:05] Speaker 2: A team doctor came that year, my senior year. I
[6:09] Speaker 2: had been in this program for at least five years,
[6:13] Speaker 2: playing for this one school. And they get a new
[6:16] Speaker 2: team doctor. And another player on the team said, hey, Doc,
[6:20] Speaker 2: he has sickle cell. Doc says, take him off team
[6:23] Speaker 2: right now. That's all it was. No, no, no, let's
[6:27] Speaker 2: go find out how we can help him play football.
[6:30] Speaker 2: None of that. The doctor says, no, no. He has
[6:33] Speaker 2: sickle cell. Take him off.
[6:34] Speaker 3: Wow.
[6:35] Speaker 2: And let me tell you, this is in my senior year. Scholarships?
[6:38] Speaker 2: Scholarships are on the line. And you snatch with it.
[6:45] Speaker 2: That whole moment made me understand that I don't want
[6:48] Speaker 2: this to happen to another person with sickle cell. I
[6:51] Speaker 2: don't want this to, nobody had this feeling. And I
[6:54] Speaker 2: made a promise to myself that I would never let
[6:55] Speaker 2: sickle cell rob me of another thing. And that's why
[6:58] Speaker 2: I said I choose to live my life when I'm,
[7:01] Speaker 2: In a way that I want other people to see
[7:03] Speaker 2: themselves say, man, I'm inspired.
[7:05] Speaker 3: Right.
[7:06] Speaker 2: Look what he's doing.
[7:07] Speaker 1: So your foundation is about motivation and inspiration.
[7:09] Speaker 2: It's about motivation and inspiration. It's about showing people that
[7:15] Speaker 2: your life can be just as amazing if you just
[7:18] Speaker 2: dream it.
[7:18] Speaker 1: Cool. Now, 2013, that's when you started the foundation. How
[7:23] Speaker 1: does one start a foundation? That's a great idea, but
[7:27] Speaker 1: how does one start a foundation?
[7:29] Speaker 3: Well.
[7:30] Speaker 2: I called some people who had foundations and asked them.
[7:33] Speaker 1: Mentorship.
[7:34] Speaker 2: Yeah, mentorship. And, you know, they went down there and
[7:38] Speaker 2: actually filled out all the paperwork for me.
[7:39] Speaker 3: Mm-hmm.
[7:40] Speaker 2: And they brought me back the approval that I had
[7:43] Speaker 2: a 501c3. Mm-hmm. And, man, I went right to work.
[7:47] Speaker 2: I mean, because I had no idea. You understand, you know,
[7:49] Speaker 2: starting something like that and you've never done it because
[7:52] Speaker 2: I'm just a comedian. I don't know, you know, all
[7:55] Speaker 2: the rules and laws.
[7:56] Speaker 1: Right, right.
[7:57] Speaker 2: You know, I'm not down there. I said, man, but
[7:59] Speaker 2: I want it.
[7:59] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[8:00] Speaker 2: Because I was working with another foundation and they just
[8:04] Speaker 2: didn't really want to do what I wanted to do.
[8:06] Speaker 1: They didn't have your vision.
[8:07] Speaker 2: They didn't have the vision. Okay. And so I said, okay,
[8:09] Speaker 2: why don't I just go start my own? Yeah.
[8:12] Speaker 1: So it's important when you talk about the secrets to
[8:14] Speaker 1: your success, if you have a vision and it's not
[8:17] Speaker 1: being shaped, and it's being shaped in a different direction,
[8:21] Speaker 1: then you should take control of it.
[8:22] Speaker 2: You got to take control of it. Yeah. That's one
[8:24] Speaker 2: thing about it is that what I had envisioned for
[8:28] Speaker 2: people with sickle cell was not theirs.
[8:30] Speaker 1: Right.
[8:31] Speaker 2: And so, yeah, I took it on personally and say, okay,
[8:34] Speaker 2: I'll tell you what. If you don't like the idea
[8:37] Speaker 2: that I have, because why are we still in the
[8:39] Speaker 2: state that we're still in? How come everybody feels the
[8:41] Speaker 2: way they feel about civil sale? They don't know anything
[8:44] Speaker 2: about it. Everybody gets to look on their face. What
[8:46] Speaker 2: is this? How come they're here at that? No.
[8:49] Speaker 1: Right.
[8:50] Speaker 2: No. Because I'm still here. Right. I'm still here. I'm
[8:53] Speaker 2: still here.
[8:54] Speaker 1: Let me know what you hear about it at.
[8:56] Speaker 2: What store is it at? I can go get it.
[8:58] Speaker 3: Please, don't go anywhere. We'll be right back with more
[9:01] Speaker 3: Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Welcome back to the Money Making
[9:12] Speaker 3: Conversations Masterclass hosted by Rashawn McDonald.
[9:15] Speaker 2: And so, when I did that, man, I did, I
[9:18] Speaker 2: started seeing the need for inspiration.
[9:21] Speaker 1: Right. Right.
[9:22] Speaker 2: I would go to single-cell conferences and I started seeing
[9:24] Speaker 2: people just say, I don't know what I'm going.
[9:26] Speaker 3: To do, man.
[9:27] Speaker 2: I don't, I don't know if I'm going to live
[9:29] Speaker 2: past this. I said, who told you that?
[9:32] Speaker 1: So when they talk about stereotypes, you were told at
[9:36] Speaker 1: seven you wouldn't live past 11. So there are adult
[9:39] Speaker 1: people or people in their 20s have that same death.
[9:44] Speaker 2: Yeah, that whole thing.
[9:45] Speaker 1: I'm going to die mentality.
[9:46] Speaker 2: I'm going to die.
[9:47] Speaker 1: Which means that they don't foresee a future.
[9:50] Speaker 2: No. No, a lot of them feel like I'm just
[9:53] Speaker 2: going to be this. But then We went on this
[9:56] Speaker 2: journey on Living Your Life, the podcast.
[9:58] Speaker 3: Oh, okay.
[9:59] Speaker 2: And I started finding that.
[10:00] Speaker 1: Okay, let's talk it through. Living Your Life, what exactly
[10:03] Speaker 1: is it? You said it's a podcast.
[10:04] Speaker 2: Okay, it's a podcast.
[10:05] Speaker 1: I do.
[10:06] Speaker 2: It's about, you know, it's about the community of Secret Sale.
[10:10] Speaker 2: It's about the lifestyle that we have. Mm-hmm. It's about
[10:13] Speaker 2: the doctors. It's about the people who have foundations like myself.
[10:18] Speaker 2: It's about the inspiration. It's about motivating. It's about finding
[10:22] Speaker 2: out really who you are in the sickle cell community.
[10:24] Speaker 2: And you'll find a lot of people who are dealing
[10:28] Speaker 2: with the same thing and have the same like-mindedness that
[10:31] Speaker 2: I do about sickle cell, which is like, hey, have
[10:34] Speaker 2: you guys seen this? That'll take away the whole woe
[10:37] Speaker 2: is me and all this. Look what they're doing. I mean,
[10:40] Speaker 2: people have their own foundations at 17. Young people have
[10:44] Speaker 2: CBOs at 20. They're all teaching somebody something. They're all
[10:51] Speaker 2: working together. And that's what I enjoy. I even just
[10:55] Speaker 2: hear across the world.
[10:57] Speaker 1: Okay, so your podcast is not a domestic only podcast.
[11:01] Speaker 2: No, because Sickle Cell is not a domestic. I don't
[11:05] Speaker 2: think about Sickle Cell as just an American issue or
[11:08] Speaker 2: a black issue. It's a global issue.
[11:11] Speaker 3: Wow.
[11:12] Speaker 2: It's the first issue of mankind.
[11:14] Speaker 1: Uh-huh.
[11:15] Speaker 2: It was sickle cell.
[11:16] Speaker 3: Uh-huh.
[11:17] Speaker 2: That's a blood disorder. Mm-hmm. You know, blood cells are
[11:19] Speaker 2: shaped like half sickles. That's the first issue in mankind's history.
[11:23] Speaker 2: So why would I limit it to black people?
[11:25] Speaker 1: Right.
[11:26] Speaker 2: I found out that Asians have sickle cell. Oh. I
[11:29] Speaker 2: found out Swedish people.
[11:30] Speaker 1: That's a stereotype.
[11:31] Speaker 2: Yeah.
[11:32] Speaker 1: That we have that basically sickle cell in the United States,
[11:36] Speaker 1: there's a black person, African-American. Yeah, it's African-American disease.
[11:39] Speaker 2: No, it's not.
[11:40] Speaker 1: Uh-huh.
[11:41] Speaker 2: No, it's not. South Africans, they have sickle cell. It's global. Iran,
[11:46] Speaker 2: the Middle East.
[11:47] Speaker 1: Middle East. Okay.
[11:48] Speaker 2: You know, you got Europe. There's sickle cell is everywhere.
[11:54] Speaker 2: So why I'm going to treat this like an American
[11:59] Speaker 2: issue when it's a global issue?
[12:01] Speaker 1: So let me ask you this question. So the words,
[12:03] Speaker 1: you have sickle cell disease, right?
[12:05] Speaker 3: Yes, sir.
[12:06] Speaker 1: So are all sickle cell disease the same?
[12:08] Speaker 2: None. No, no, no.
[12:10] Speaker 1: Educators.
[12:11] Speaker 2: Yeah, no, they're not all the same. Everybody has what
[12:15] Speaker 2: they call hemoglobin, right? So my type is SC, okay?
[12:21] Speaker 2: That's my globin type, SC. Some other people may have
[12:25] Speaker 2: type SS. Some other people may have another type, fatal thalassemia.
[12:30] Speaker 2: There's so many of them. It doesn't matter your type.
[12:33] Speaker 2: The one thing we're all affected by is pain. We're
[12:37] Speaker 2: all affected by... Issues with spleen.
[12:41] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[12:41] Speaker 2: You know, we're all affected by it. It doesn't matter.
[12:45] Speaker 2: If we have a sickle cell, you're affected by the stereotypes,
[12:48] Speaker 2: the mental health. Right. You know, all of these things
[12:50] Speaker 2: that you've been fighting daily. Right. You know, if you
[12:56] Speaker 2: go to the hospital, another stereotype that we have is
[12:59] Speaker 2: that when we go to the hospital and we're in pain,
[13:02] Speaker 2: call us drug seekers.
[13:03] Speaker 1: Wow.
[13:04] Speaker 2: You know, and I'm in there to be treated just
[13:06] Speaker 2: like anybody else.
[13:07] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[13:08] Speaker 2: But no, they say, well, he's only in here because
[13:11] Speaker 2: he wants opioids, so he's a drug seeker. And that'll
[13:15] Speaker 2: mess with him.
[13:15] Speaker 1: And you're in the middle of a crisis.
[13:17] Speaker 2: I'm in the middle of a crisis, yeah. And that
[13:20] Speaker 2: will really mess with your mind growing up because, well,
[13:23] Speaker 2: they just won't treat me like they treat everyone else.
[13:28] Speaker 2: And so you start seeing that in a lot of
[13:30] Speaker 2: people as well. Like, they won't give me the drugs
[13:32] Speaker 2: I need.
[13:32] Speaker 1: I won't get the care.
[13:33] Speaker 2: So now we have to go advocate for this person.
[13:36] Speaker 2: Now we're going to talk on their behalf.
[13:38] Speaker 1: Right.
[13:38] Speaker 2: They say, hey, y'all are doing an injustice to this person. Now,
[13:43] Speaker 2: you have people who have, when they were not treated,
[13:46] Speaker 2: sometimes they end up dying.
[13:47] Speaker 1: Wow.
[13:48] Speaker 2: Because they don't have the care. Because a doctor or
[13:52] Speaker 2: a nurse said, I don't believe you. Right. You say
[13:55] Speaker 2: you're a pain of 10. You can't look like pain.
[13:58] Speaker 1: So your whole thing with your foundation is about motivation.
[14:03] Speaker 2: Absolutely.
[14:04] Speaker 1: Ending medical ignorance.
[14:06] Speaker 3: Yes.
[14:07] Speaker 1: And... stigmas that lead to stereotypes that's exactly right and
[14:12] Speaker 1: i guess the bigger thing is that turning people into
[14:15] Speaker 1: who have sickle cell disease into.
[14:17] Speaker 2: Dreamers yes that's a big part of it you know
[14:21] Speaker 2: and and and now now what you're doing now what
[14:23] Speaker 2: you're doing now matt what you just described is what
[14:27] Speaker 2: um is what our logo says working to change the
[14:31] Speaker 2: shape of sickle cell so you know the the The
[14:35] Speaker 2: thing what you just described is what we're working to do.
[14:38] Speaker 2: Now you start to see that, like our logo says,
[14:41] Speaker 2: we're working to change the shape of sickle cell.
[14:43] Speaker 1: The shape of sickle cell.
[14:45] Speaker 2: It's the perception. See, all those things take to change
[14:49] Speaker 2: the perception of sickle cell. And that's what we work towards.
[14:52] Speaker 2: That's what we do.
[14:53] Speaker 1: Well, let's talk about your impact. You know, you're the
[14:57] Speaker 1: big mega horn, the Steve Aubrey Morning Show. You're born
[15:01] Speaker 1: and raised in Houston, Texas.
[15:02] Speaker 3: Yes, sir.
[15:03] Speaker 2: And.
[15:04] Speaker 1: The state of Texas recognized your work, correct?
[15:07] Speaker 2: Yes, they did. About five years ago, they gave me
[15:10] Speaker 2: a state proclamation, which I'm very proud of. Being from Texas,
[15:14] Speaker 2: your state recognized you. That's a big deal, man. They
[15:18] Speaker 2: actually gave me an entire month called Kears Hope Sickle
[15:21] Speaker 2: Cell Awareness Month in the month of June. And that
[15:24] Speaker 2: will live on forever. And that's when I knew I
[15:27] Speaker 2: was making an impact. That's when I actually saw it.
[15:30] Speaker 1: That led to races, I think charity races or fundraising
[15:34] Speaker 1: races or brand awareness races for Sickle Cell, correct?
[15:39] Speaker 2: Yeah, it's for Sickle Cell. It's a fundraiser. But the
[15:42] Speaker 2: point of it is to get the community to get
[15:45] Speaker 2: behind and come out here and find out exactly what
[15:48] Speaker 2: Sickle Cell is.
[15:49] Speaker 1: Uh-huh.
[15:49] Speaker 2: I mean, it's a race, yes. But you need to
[15:52] Speaker 2: see that these people will come and walk for them.
[15:54] Speaker 1: Uh-huh.
[15:55] Speaker 2: They'll run for them.
[15:56] Speaker 3: Uh-huh.
[15:56] Speaker 2: I don't care if you ride your bike for them.
[15:58] Speaker 2: You just need to understand that these are people too,
[16:00] Speaker 2: and they're part of our community. And so when the
[16:03] Speaker 2: state of Texas gave me that proclamation, and my grandmother
[16:05] Speaker 2: was allowed to see it.
[16:07] Speaker 3: Wow.
[16:07] Speaker 2: That's where it lives. It lives in her home. I
[16:10] Speaker 2: don't even have it at my house. It's at her home.
[16:12] Speaker 2: The original is in the state capitol, but the replica
[16:16] Speaker 2: is in her home of the proclamation.
[16:18] Speaker 1: Congratulations. Because of that, you have a race. You have
[16:23] Speaker 1: annual races that you do.
[16:24] Speaker 2: Yeah.
[16:25] Speaker 1: Tell us about those races.
[16:26] Speaker 2: Well, we do that in Dallas. And I'm going to
[16:29] Speaker 2: do one here in Atlanta. What we do with those
[16:32] Speaker 2: races is the funds that we raise, the money I raise,
[16:35] Speaker 2: I go do junior cloth in a different city every year.
[16:39] Speaker 2: And what I do is I try to- Do a
[16:40] Speaker 2: race in Dallas. I do a race in Dallas. And
[16:42] Speaker 2: then a race in Atlanta. I'm going to do a
[16:45] Speaker 2: race in Atlanta. And so I've done them. I've done
[16:48] Speaker 2: them in Memphis. I've done the giveaway Junior Clause in Dallas.
[16:52] Speaker 1: I've done it in- Okay, what exactly is Junior Clause?
[16:55] Speaker 2: Junior Clause is the fun thing I get to do-
[16:58] Speaker 2: For kids. For kids and families. You know, because sickle
[17:02] Speaker 2: cell affects not just the person with sickle cell, but
[17:06] Speaker 2: the entire family unit. Because see, when a person with
[17:09] Speaker 2: sickle cell goes into the hospital, then mom, dad got
[17:12] Speaker 2: to take off. Brothers and sisters have to come down there.
[17:15] Speaker 2: We're losing income in the home. It affects a lot
[17:19] Speaker 2: of things. So what I do is I take care
[17:22] Speaker 2: of the entire family's Christmas.
[17:24] Speaker 1: Right.
[17:26] Speaker 2: I take the funds that we raise. I'll go to
[17:28] Speaker 2: a city. Like this year, it's going to be Norfolk.
[17:32] Speaker 2: I got a few elves up there. I'm going to
[17:34] Speaker 2: go help me do this. And I'm going to take
[17:37] Speaker 2: 10 families.
[17:38] Speaker 1: Norfolk, Virginia.
[17:39] Speaker 2: Norfolk, Virginia. And I'm going to take 10 families and
[17:44] Speaker 2: we're going to buy a Christmas for them. Because... In December,
[17:49] Speaker 2: sickle cell patients have a hard time with cold weather.
[17:52] Speaker 1: How are these families selected, these sickle cell families? These
[17:56] Speaker 1: are teens or young kids who are impacted by the
[18:01] Speaker 1: sickle cell disease.
[18:02] Speaker 2: Right. And what I do is I work with an
[18:05] Speaker 2: organization down there who's already in the community, who already
[18:07] Speaker 2: knows these families, and we'll screen them. We'll talk to them.
[18:11] Speaker 2: We'll find out what their needs are, what they really want.
[18:15] Speaker 2: You know, I try to give them Christmas because at
[18:18] Speaker 2: any moment, they could go end up in the hospital.
[18:20] Speaker 2: And I've been in the hospital and I woke up
[18:21] Speaker 2: on Christmas, and it's no fun. Right. And so, you know,
[18:24] Speaker 2: we'll go there. We'll have lunch. We'll have a lunch
[18:27] Speaker 2: or brunch there. We'll have Santa Claus there. He'll be there.
[18:30] Speaker 2: And I bring Santa with me.
[18:31] Speaker 1: He comes.
[18:33] Speaker 2: And we pass out the toys, and you get to see.
[18:35] Speaker 1: Santa out there working for the kids.
[18:36] Speaker 2: Santa out here working for citizens. You know, he cares.
[18:39] Speaker 2: So we do all of those things, man, and it's
[18:41] Speaker 2: just a way that I give back. And I try
[18:45] Speaker 2: to show my concern and let the families know that
[18:47] Speaker 2: I'm here for you, too. And I'm busy. That's another
[18:50] Speaker 2: way we just motivate and we inspire.
[18:52] Speaker 1: Now, the very popular Living Your Life podcast, like you
[18:55] Speaker 1: told us earlier, is worldwide. It's not a domestic show.
[18:59] Speaker 1: You can see the episodes on YouTube. I went online
[19:03] Speaker 1: and I saw likes, 12,000 likes on some of your posts.
[19:06] Speaker 1: But you're not doing that show by yourself. Who is
[19:08] Speaker 1: your co-host?
[19:09] Speaker 2: Oh, my co-host is Dr. Corey Abare, Chief Medical Officer
[19:12] Speaker 2: at Dillard.
[19:13] Speaker 1: University.
[19:14] Speaker 2: He is really into, he's been working in this area
[19:17] Speaker 2: for a very long time. So he understands patients, a
[19:21] Speaker 2: doctor from a patient's perspective of sickle cell because he
[19:24] Speaker 2: studies it. He understands that we have to make some
[19:29] Speaker 2: changes and we have to get registered and get tested
[19:31] Speaker 2: to find out if you have the sickle cell trait,
[19:35] Speaker 2: which can lead to people like me. And I know
[19:39] Speaker 2: a lot of people who may not know that they
[19:42] Speaker 2: have the trait and they don't understand that one day
[19:44] Speaker 2: you could possibly have a me. And I'm talking about
[19:48] Speaker 2: at seven years old, somebody's probably going, to tell them
[19:51] Speaker 2: their life will be already 11. And what I'm trying
[19:54] Speaker 2: to do is let you know is that that's not
[19:55] Speaker 2: going to have to be your truth. Your truth can
[19:58] Speaker 2: be whatever you want it to be. Right. And that's
[20:00] Speaker 2: what we work on Living Your Life with Dr.
[20:01] Speaker 1: Corey Abay. Cool. So just trying to track on your
[20:05] Speaker 1: business schedule. Steve Harbaugh on the show.
[20:08] Speaker 3: Yes, sir.
[20:09] Speaker 1: Living your life.
[20:10] Speaker 3: Yes, sir.
[20:10] Speaker 1: Motivational podcast, YouTube show.
[20:12] Speaker 2: Yes, sir.
[20:13] Speaker 1: Okay. Foundation, Cure's own foundation.
[20:15] Speaker 2: Yes, sir.
[20:16] Speaker 1: 5K races.
[20:17] Speaker 3: Yes, sir.
[20:18] Speaker 1: One in Dallas, one in Atlanta, Georgia.
[20:20] Speaker 2: Yes, sir.
[20:21] Speaker 1: And then Junior Clause. Yes, sir. Where you, toys are
[20:24] Speaker 1: donated to your foundation.
[20:25] Speaker 3: Yes, sir.
[20:26] Speaker 1: And you distribute these toys to kids impacted, and families
[20:30] Speaker 1: impacted by the sickle cell disease. Yes, sir. That's your schedule.
[20:34] Speaker 1: That's how you're changing the community.
[20:35] Speaker 2: Okay.
[20:36] Speaker 1: Can you do something else?
[20:38] Speaker 3: Yes, sir.
[20:38] Speaker 1: Are you that busy? I'm so happy to hear that you,
[20:44] Speaker 1: instead of sitting around just being a success, that you
[20:48] Speaker 1: are motivated to change people's lives. What's the future of you,
[20:53] Speaker 1: and what advice would you give to somebody who wants
[20:56] Speaker 1: to start a foundation?
[20:58] Speaker 2: My advice, if you want to start a foundation, is
[21:01] Speaker 2: go do it. See, the longer you think about it,
[21:03] Speaker 2: the time is slipping. Mm-hmm. And then when the time
[21:06] Speaker 2: is slipping, we can't get our goals. Mm-hmm. And so
[21:09] Speaker 2: if you're actually thinking about doing this, I would suggest
[21:12] Speaker 2: you really go ahead and do it because, first of all,
[21:14] Speaker 2: you need two things. You need some empathy and you
[21:18] Speaker 2: need some motivation.
[21:19] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[21:20] Speaker 2: Those two things. If you can understand a person's plight.
[21:23] Speaker 1: Mm-hmm.
[21:24] Speaker 2: And it drives you to say, I want to change
[21:26] Speaker 2: something for that person. Mm-hmm. It don't have to be 10,000. Mm-hmm.
[21:30] Speaker 2: But if you do it 10,000 times once, it's 10,000. Mm-hmm.
[21:35] Speaker 2: It doesn't have to be in masses. I did this
[21:38] Speaker 2: for a number of years and accumulated the people that
[21:40] Speaker 2: we had. That's what I did.
[21:42] Speaker 1: Awesome. If you have a minute, I want to share
[21:46] Speaker 1: something with you. Walmart Business Plus has a surprise for you.
[21:50] Speaker 1: For me? Yes, sir. And your foundation.
[21:53] Speaker 2: Really?
[21:53] Speaker 1: Yes. Before we wrap up the conversation, Walmart Business has
[21:57] Speaker 1: a little surprise for you, Junior, and your foundation, Kears Hope,
[22:00] Speaker 1: because of the work you're doing in the community. They're
[22:03] Speaker 1: setting you up with a six-month Walmart Business Plus membership,
[22:07] Speaker 1: so that's free shipping and limited-time offers on products for
[22:10] Speaker 1: business owners and foundations like yours with 2% rewards on purchases.
[22:16] Speaker 1: You get 2% rewards back on purchases over $ 250. Oh, man.
[22:19] Speaker 1: And you're getting a $ 1, 000 e-gift card to spend on
[22:22] Speaker 1: whatever you need All you have to do is go
[22:28] Speaker 1: to business.walmart.com with that $ 1, 000 e-gift card. I know you've
[22:33] Speaker 1: got the race coming up in Dallas, the race coming
[22:37] Speaker 1: up in Atlanta, and I know you've got the Junior Clause.
[22:40] Speaker 1: Hopefully this will help you out.
[22:42] Speaker 2: It will help me out.
[22:43] Speaker 1: Congratulations, brother.
[22:44] Speaker 2: Thank you.
[22:46] Speaker 1: Give me your life.
[22:47] Speaker 2: Oh, man.
[22:48] Speaker 1: Proclamation.
[22:49] Speaker 2: Let me tell you what I'm doing right now. I'm
[22:51] Speaker 2: going to go to Walmart right now.
[22:56] Speaker 1: This has been another edition of Money Making Conversations Masterclass
[22:59] Speaker 1: hosted by me, Rashawn McDonald. Thank you to our guests
[23:03] Speaker 1: on the show today and thank you, our listening audience. Now,
[23:06] Speaker 1: if you want to listen to any episode or want
[23:08] Speaker 1: to be a guest on the show, visit MoneyMakingConversations.com. Our
[23:12] Speaker 1: social media handle is Money Making Conversations. Join us next
[23:16] Speaker 1: week and remember to always lead with your gifts.
[23:19] Speaker 3: Keep winning.

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