Wednesday evening, May 23, 2018, basketball great Karl Malone, better known as 'The Mailman,' came to Shreveport to visit with about 40 students and their parents at our local Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club of Shreveport on Greenwood Road!

Malone, originally from Summerfield, LA spent 18 years with the Utah Jazz and one with the Los Angeles Lakers... He also had two gold medals earned while representing the United States in the Summer Olympic Games in 1992 and 1996. According to Wikipedia, Malone's 36,928 career points scored rank him second of all-time in NBA history behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He also co-holds the record for the most first team All-NBA selections in history (tied with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James). As you can tell, Karl Malone is in good company! And yes, being a good Louisiana boy, he went to a Louisiana school, playing ball for Louisiana Tech team that went to the school's first NCAA tournament ever in 1984. When he retired from the NBA, he joined the Bulldog basketball team coaching staff in 2007. He later left to work off court with the Utah Jazz.

Malone is quoted as saying, 'Sometimes, you follow your dreams. I say to the young people, ’If you have a dream, chase it.’' That was the type of message that Malone delivered to the young people and their families Wednesday evening on Greenwood Road during his surprise visit. Here's what Sara Kleinecke, the Director of Development for The Salvation Army, had to say about Mr. Malone's visit:

Students and staff at The Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club were told the local club would be having a guest speaker tonight, but no one knew ahead of time Karl Malone would be paying a visit.  Mr. Malone stopped by the club on Wednesday night to interact with the students. His focus was not on his famed basketball career, but rather a message of realism regarding life, school and families.

Students, their parents, club staff and council members of The Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club heard Mr. Malone speak on several topics, including his upbringing in Summerfield, Louisiana, and attending Louisiana Tech University.  Mr. Malone also spoke about being respectful to those in authority and striving to make good choices in life. Afterwards Mr. Malone opened the room to questions, then he took pictures with the students.

The local club hopes to have Mr. Malone return in the future, but a date hasn’t been set yet.

Thank you Mr. Malone for taking the time to come and visit at our local Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club. We deeply appreciate your time and more message and hope you can come again!

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