It's not easy to teach a child how to win. Dikembe Mutombo More Quotes by Dikembe Mutombo More Quotes From Dikembe Mutombo When I was born, my dad and my mom gave me names, but in Africa, when your child is born, especially close family members can suggest names they want to add on. Dikembe Mutombo dad mom children I was not very strong growing up, and my uncle used to look at me, like, This kid is not growing up, he is growing tall but he can be broken like a banana. Dikembe Mutombo uncles growing-up strong It took a long time for me to walk. I was falling down all the time. But I ended up being one of the dangerous men, who broke so many people's noses, which is bad. Dikembe Mutombo men long fall I come from a large family, but I was not raised with a fortune. Something more was left me, and that was family values. Dikembe Mutombo family-values raised fortune My heroes always are mostly my parents - my father especially, and my mom, who's passed on already. My dad is a very strong man, and by him being educated, and a principal and school superintendent over 37 years, he plays such a big role in my life. Dikembe Mutombo dad mom strong My favorite memory is my five years with the Nuggets. From my first day to my last day is a great memory. There wasn't a year that I was a Nugget that I didn't think we succeeded. Dikembe Mutombo memories years thinking There are people out there dying every day, so when you wake up, you just have to thank the Man Upstairs for another day on this planet. There's not much else we can ask for. Dikembe Mutombo dying men people I don't think God said we should all be soft. My job is to compete, and the best prevails. I will continue to play, and that's the way I'm succeeding in my life. If I hit you by mistake, all I can say is 'I'm sorry,' and I keep moving on. Dikembe Mutombo sorry mistake jobs I usually just speak in English when I'm on the basketball court. For some reason, my mind never even tried to cross any other language when I'm playing basketball. Dikembe Mutombo language basketball mind Scores of Congolese die each day unnecessarily due to the lack of access to healthcare and modern medicine. Dikembe Mutombo healthcare medicine each-day I am not in politics. 'President Mutombo?' No, no, no. There has never been a politician in my family, and I am not going to try to be the first one. Dikembe Mutombo president trying firsts As a matter of fact I've been asked to come when I'm free to play at the White House. Dikembe Mutombo white house play We are devastated by the loss of Matadi and our heart goes out to his father, his mother and the rest of his family, and all his old and new friends. Dikembe Mutombo top-news Every day, the sun comes out and the sky's always blue. That's what I miss about Denver. Dikembe Mutombo day sun sky blue Africa needs more funding to continue to fight all of those diseases. We are losing more than 1.3 million young children under the age of five every year because of malaria. We've already lost 25 million people to the pandemic of HIV-AIDS. More people are dying now from typhoid fever. Diabetes is on the rise. Dikembe Mutombo fight age children people If I had not played basketball and made the millions of dollars that I had made, I would never have been able to build a hospital in Congo. It started in 1997, and 10 years later I was able to unveil the Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital, named after my mother, in my hometown outside of Kinshasa. It was such a blessing. Dikembe Mutombo hospital hometown blessing mother I've always had a passion for giving back. It's a family tradition that comes from my devout parents. They were always giving back and serving the community. So when I became fortunate enough and blessed to play the game of basketball, I was also fortunate enough to follow in my parents' footsteps and give back like the way they did. Dikembe Mutombo passion family community blessed I created the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation back in 1997 for the purpose of going in and improving the living conditions of my people on the African continent, especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo where I came from. Out first mission was to go and build a new hospital. Our next mission was to build a school. Dikembe Mutombo hospital new people school At the end of my journey, I see myself as a Rocket. That's where I ended my career, and also the organization that did so much for me. They knew I had a vision, and I went to work for the owner, who's a man who believes in philanthropy and believed in me as a player. Dikembe Mutombo myself man journey work My good friend Yao Ming was the first big player in the NBA to come from China. He gave himself to the game and was successful. That inspired the NBA to invest more and do more for the game of basketball. We're building academies not just in China, but in India, Africa, Europe and South America as well. Dikembe Mutombo friend game good building
