All proceeds from the Cactus Jack HBCU Classic go to its Waymon Webster Scholarship Fund, which has awarded 200 $10,000 scholarships over the last two years.
The inaugural Cactus Jack HBCU Classic softball game kicked off Thursday with the celebrity All-Star game in Scott’s hometown of Houston, Texas. The Travis Scott-led event featured Adrian Peterson, Deandre Hopkins, Ken Griffey Jr., Terrell Owens, Tracy McGrady, Vince Young, Andre Johnson, and more.
Outside of the celebrity game, the event will feature nine games from Friday through Sunday from HBCUs Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern University, Southern University, Grambling State University, Jackson State University, and Mississippi Valley State University. Originally, the tournament came together through a partnership with the Houston Astros Foundation. The pact is a multi-year commitment from the Astors to showcase HBCU talent and provide financial support to HBCU students.
“From an early age, Travis has always been immersed in the culture & history of HBCUs and his ties is what has laid the foundation for the Waymon Webster Scholarship Initiative,” said Jordan Webster, the managing director of the Cactus Jack Foundation HBCU program in a statement. Webster is Travis Scott’s sister and a Howard University graduate.
The Cactus Jack Foundation has also awarded 200 $10,000 scholarships over the last two years through its Waymon Webster Scholarship Fund which awards the gifts to graduating seniors at HBCUs. All of the proceeds from the Cactus Jack Celebrity Softball game will go directly into the fund. The scholarship is named after Scott and his sister’s grandfather who taught at Prairie View A&M University.
Webster told Boardroom that growing up, she and her brother would go to the Panthers’ homecoming every year.
“There are so many HBCUs across the nation that are unrecognized and lack so many resources. We want to fulfill this need and provide support to as many HBCU students as we can,” she said.
She went on to explain how the foundation chose softball as the event’s sport and the impact she hopes the event will have.
“Everyone loves a good softball game,” Webster said. “It’s a way to bring all age groups together to have fun. We want to reach more students and more schools and we believe that our HBCU Classic is the first step in reaching our goal.”
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