Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and players Luka Dončić and Dwight Powell are teaming up with the Dallas Mavericks Foundation to donate $500,000 to the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and Parkland Hospital as medical personnel continue to tackle the coronavirus pandemic head-on.
The team said Friday funds will be allocated to support childcare for healthcare workers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 response effort during this unprecedented time.
“We can’t thank our healthcare workers enough for putting their patients’ well-being before their own,” said Cuban. “I am thankful to Luka and Dwight as we partner up to support healthcare workers who are doing everything they can to keep our community healthy.”
“We are deeply grateful to the entire Dallas Mavericks organization, and especially to Mark, Dwight and Luka, for their incredible generosity in providing emergency childcare funding benefitting the frontline healthcare workers of UT Southwestern and Parkland,” said Daniel K. Podolsky, MD, president of UT Southwestern. “This will alleviate a tremendous burden faced by so many nurses, physicians, lab technicians and other care team members working nonstop on our COVID-19 response. Having support for childcare will be one less thing they have to worry about.”
UT Southwestern and Parkland frontline caregiving staff include inpatient intensivists, advanced practice practitioners, physicians, nurses, phlebotomists, sonographers, radiology technicians, transporters, lab technicians and pharmacists. Additionally, support staff includes front desk staff, medical assistants and janitorial staff who are critical to the functioning of an urgent care environment.
The team said allocation of the funds to individual staff will be made as expeditiously as possible.
“Thank you to our amazing healthcare workers,” said Dončić. “They are sacrificing so much to care for others, and I am honored to help.”
“We are extremely grateful for the amazing bravery shown by our health professionals during this difficult time,” said Powell. “We feel it’s our duty to do whatever we can to support their efforts. We continue to practice social distancing and good hygiene, while hoping this fund helps prevent families from further hardship as a result of their sacrifice.”
