LeBron James sends heartfelt letter to student-coach who inspires kids at his high school

Gregg Doyel over at The Indianapolis Star wrote a story about a 19-year-old kid named Emanuel Duncan. He’s a student-coach at Lawrence Central High School, and he’s bound to a wheelchair because of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. He’s probably the most loved person at the school -- and perhaps the whole town -- and everyone on his football team looks up to him. Doyel’s story on Duncan is really worth a read, and you’ll come away loving the kid by the end. (Fun fact: he does not like Skip Bayless.)

One of the things mentioned in the story is that Duncan really wants to meet his role model LeBron James:

“My bucket list is to meet LeBron,” he tells me. “That’s the one thing I want to do. Meet LeBron James. That’s my role model. He inspires me to do everything. To be a good person, to put other people first, to live your life and do what makes you happy. If I meet LeBron James, that would make my day. I wouldn’t ask for anything.”

Duncan’s story somehow got to LeBron, and while he didn’t give him a personal meeting (yet), he sent Duncan a gift and a heartfelt letter:

The letter reads:

Hey Emanuel,

I’ve heard some pretty amazing things about you, and from what I’ve heard, I can tell you’re an unbelievable coach. I know you said that I’m your role model and that I inspire you, but I know that you give so many people inspiration, including me. You are living out what it means to be a role model, to be a good person, to put others first and live life to the fullest, doing what makes you happy. It is awesome that you are inspiring so many young kids and teaching them about the importance of living life to the fullest. You live this out each and every day. This is reminder to me to continue doing that whether I’m on or off the court.

I wanted to send you a few things I thought you’d like to let you know that I’m thinking of you. I know you are a fighter and you are very strong. And I hope you know that you are not going through this alone ... I know you have a whole team of people from everywhere supporting you. Not sure if you knew this but I wear these things called I PROMISE bands every time I step onto the court. They make me think of the PROMISES I have made to myself and others. Here’s one for you and me to share as we work with kids ... I PROMISE TO NEVER GIVE UP.

Together we will change the world.

LeBron James

Good on LeBron for doing something special for Duncan. Hopefully, the two eventually meet.