Marcus Stroud, former Jacksonville Jaguar football player, will host the 2014 Love, Live, Laugh charity event in Jacksonville, Florida, on Nov. 8 at 7:30 p.m. This event will help bring awareness to The Marcus Stroud Charitable Foundation, which helps underprivileged youth. Half of the events’ proceeds will be donated to the foundation.
This event will host a number of celebrities, include. Reality TV star Tamar Braxton, comedians Rickey Smiley and Nephew Tommy and R&B Singer Lyfe Jennings and many more.
I had the pleasure of speaking with Stroud about his involvement in philanthropy and how events like Live, Laugh, Love benefit the community. Here’s what he had to say.
Can you tell me a little bit about the event and its purpose?
“It’s an event I’m putting together with Tamar Braxton, Lyfe Jennings, Rickey Smiley and Nephew Tommy from the Steve Harvey Morning Show. And a portion of the proceeds will be going to go to the Marcus Stroud Foundation, which brings awareness to childhood obesity.”
Why is the event called “Love Live Laugh”?
“The love is the part with the R&B singers Lyfe Jennings and Tamar Braxton; they represent the love. The laughter part comes in with Rickey Smiley and Nephew Tommy; they’re both the comedic part of it. So once we combine “Love and “Laugh” together you definitely want to live. It’ll give people a chance to come out and see some good clean comedy from today’s top R&B acts all on one stage. It’s definitely not for the small kids; if it were a movie, it’d be a PG-13 movie.”
What inspired you to transition from being an athlete to a philanthropist?
“I’ve actually been a philanthropist all my life; I’ve always like to help people who had less opportunities and chances growing up as I did. I wanted to try to extend some of what I do with my foundation and help kids get out and be active and expose them some things they may not have the chance to see otherwise.”
What else does your foundation focus on?
“We also want to implement an anti-bullying campaign, so that will be the next thing I do.”
What other events do you have in the future similar to this one?
“The next event I have coming up, as far as my foundation, is my Christmas program, called Pass the Play. That’s where we take underprivileged kids Christmas shopping and try to instill the purpose of Christmas and giving back. This event will happen later on this year around Christmas time.”
Are other football players involved in the charity as well?
“Of course. They come out and support and help me out as much as they can.”
When did you start your charity?
“I started my charity around 2005 to 2006, almost 10 years ago.”
Is there anything else you want us to know about your event?
“The most important thing you should know is that the show is Nov. 8. Showtime is at 7:30 p.m. and you can go to ticketmaster.com to get your tickets.”
