Flint native JaVale McGee fed up, seeks solution for clean water
Dallas Mavericks forward JaVale McGee doesn't always get credit for being the brightest bulb in the box, but maybe what he's doing to help his hometown of Flint, Mich., get clean water will change all that.
McGee was born and raised in Flint. He moved on to Detroit to go to high school and then Chicago, and hasn't lived back in the industrial town since. But his heart remains there. And it's breaking as he absorbs the unnecessary suffering of Flint's residents during the lead-poisoning crisis that has unimaginably rendered the town's water supply unusable.
McGee wants to do something about it, but not just bring in bottled water or other short-term solutions. McGee wants to find a long-term plan to fix the problem and keep Flint's water clean. According to Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News, who talked to the Mavs reserve center, McGee has put together a "team, as he calls his group of representatives," who have been in contact with Flint officials. Within a month, McGee hopes to be able to come forward with a plan.
He compared what's happening in Flint to the tragedy in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
It's not exactly clear how or what McGee and his team can do. But the fact that he's getting involved, and apparently deeply, says a lot about what McGee is all about. The good people of Flint are certainly rooting for him.
