“Don’t give up. Don’t ever give up.”
That is the famous motto of the V Foundation for Cancer Research, founded 25 years ago by legendary NC State men’s basketball coach Jim Valvano. Valvano led the Wolfpack to a national championship in 1983, but his impact on the world and NC State extends so much further than just basketball, and he was given his due recognition by the university Wednesday night.
In front of a packed crowd in Reynolds Coliseum, the place where Valvano won 121 games, NC State dedicated the arena area of the building to the late Valvano, who died from cancer in 1993. It officially became the James T. Valvano Arena at William Neal Reynolds Coliseum on Wednesday night when the Wolfpack took on Western Carolina.
Valvano meant a lot to NC State on the court, leading the Pack to its second national title on one of college basketball’s most memorable Cinderella runs. But basketball is just a game.
What has become much more a part of Valvano’s legacy than his wild running around the court in ’83, looking for anyone to hug, is the V Foundation. Valvano announced the charity at a famous speech at the 1993 ESPY Awards, a speech that is shown every year during ESPN’s Jimmy V Week, which is currently ongoing.
It was a speech that inspired and will still inspire anyone who listens to it. Valvano was sick when he gave it, knowing he didn’t have much time. But that speech was powerful. Unforgettable. It launched an organization that has now raised over $200 million for cancer research.
It was a speech that showed the man Valvano truly was and the things that were important to him. It was a speech filled with humor from a man who was approaching his end. It was a speech filled with thoughts and advice from a coach whose legacy still lives on today at NC State.
“There are three things we all should do every day,” Valvano said that night. “We should do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day. Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. Number three is you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think about it. If you laugh, you think and you cry, that’s a full day. That’s a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you’re going to have something special.”
Those words have lived on, and now 25 years later the V Foundation is still touching lives. And that’s what mattered most to Valvano, who said in that speech that the money raised “may not save my life. It may save my children’s lives. It may save someone you love.”
Now, Valvano’s name can’t be missed when you walk into Reynolds, with big, bold letters that say “Valvano Arena at Reynolds Coliseum” adorning the walls on each side of the court. Valvano’s name has now joined legendary women’s coach Kay Yow’s in Reynolds, who also died of cancer and has the court named after her.
With his statue outside and his arena inside, Valvano is now fully part of Reynolds Coliseum. His legacy should never be forgotten by those at NC State, and this honor will help make certain that Valvano will be carried forever by the Wolfpack.
“Cancer can take away all my physical abilities,” Valvano said to wrap up that famous speech. “It cannot touch my mind, it cannot touch my heart and it cannot touch my soul. And those three things are going to carry me forever. I thank you, and God bless you all.”
