A bronze statue of basketball legend Bill Walton with his beloved bicycle stands just outside the entrance of the Mission Valley YMCA in San Diego!
I heard the San Diego Blood Bank was having a blood drive in honor of Bill Walton at this YMCA today, so I figured I’d come on down. Of course, I had to take photographs of Bill Walton’s joyful sculpture!
Here’s a 2016 article about the sculpture’s creation. It explains: Bill Walton led the UCLA Bruins to national championships in the early 1970s before playing for San Diego Clippers, the Portland Trail Blazers, and Boston Celtics and joining the NBA. Walton won two NBA championships and was named the NBA valuable player. He was also a very dedicated Grateful Dead Deadhead!
The artist who created the life-size, carefully detailed sculpture is Alison Brown. She really captured his energy and love of life. Bill frequently visited the Mission Valley YMCA, and he would greet everyone with his big smile.
Bill Walton grew up in La Mesa near Lake Murray and played high school basketball at Helix High School. He spent his later years living in San Diego, where he was an active public figure and loved by many. Check out his Wikipedia page to learn of his many accomplishments.
The statue’s plaque recalls how Bill Walton spent many hours at the Mission Valley YMCA. Because the indoor pool soothed his chronic pain, he said the Y saved his life.
Finally, here’s the web page concerning today’s inaugural Bill Walton Memorial Blood Drive. There’s a button you can click if you’d like to donate blood in the future. You can schedule a visit to the San Diego Blood Bank or learn of upcoming blood drives!
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