Donte Greene Saves a Life

You often hear a lot about the Michael Vick's and Terrell Owens and other negative sports stars of the world, but rarely ever hear of the many athletes who do positive things for their community. This might not make mainstream media, but stories like this need to be glorified. Kings Forward, and former Syracuse player Donte Greene used his former lifeguard skills to save a woman who was trapped in a dangerous river in Sacramento. Here are some of the highlights of the interview he did on KHTK in Sacramento, via www.sportsradiointerviews.com. A link to the entire interview will be at the bottom of this post.

What happened, Donte?

“We went down the American River, out there having fun, we were linked up with a few boats and everything. Been out there, basically all afternoon, so we were wrapping everything up, everyone was grabbing their buoys and everything, untying and trying to leave. She had let one of her friends drive her boat so she was at the back of the boat trying to pull her ladder in, and I guess she didn’t know she was back there and hit the engine and she flew off the back of the boat. So, I didn’t know, I thought she could swim, she couldn’t swim, I think I’m a swimmer, I was a lifeguard coming up in high school. So, I guess I just reacted and just jumped in, someone threw her a life preserver and I pulled her in to a boat (someone else’s) - almost got run over by one…”

What was going through your head when you jumped in?

“I didn’t even think about it, it was just instinct. You see somebody in a position and you know you can help them out. The water, I’m not even gonna lie, was freezing, freezing cold, but I was hot anyway so the water cooled me off, so that was good… It was just something that happened.”

Showing his humility about the moment he was asked to come on KHTK:

“I got the text earlier that you guys wanted to have me on and I didn’t even know what was going on, I thought a bad rumor had started. You know, these days everybody’s saying all sorts of things. No problem having me on, I’m just she’s okay and everything.”

Very refreshing to see an athlete be so humble after doing some as noteworthy as this. Hopefully, this type of deed can make people realize that Donte Grenne may not be as immature as everyone tries to make him seem. This is the side of sports that people need to read, see, and hear.

Donte Greene Interview with KHTK in Sacramento via sportsradiointerviews.com