This past weekend I attended the Juice Foundation’s Fashion for a Cause hosted by Jenine and Juwan Howard for a feature on Fox Sports Sun this Miami HEAT season. At the event were current Miami HEAT stars plus NBA Champion Ray Allen. His four sons walked the runway at the event to raise money for Alex’s Place at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, and as we were waiting for the show to begin I chatted with him.
For those that don’t know, Shannon and Ray Allen’s second son, 8 year old Walker Allen has type 1 diabetes. His parents test Walker’s blood sugar levels 10 times a day, and sometimes he requires up to 7 shots to make sure his blood glucose levels are safe. I wondered if Halloween was a tough time of year for the Allen’s given all the candy, and was surprised to hear Ray’s answer.
“Yeah, he can eat some candy, his levels were actually too low when we got here today. But the interesting thing is they collect the candy , but for the past 4 or 5 years they never eat it. So I don’t know if its the generations, or if the tides are changing, but it was so different when we were little. We went through every piece, separated them, made sure nobody would eat them and counted it! For our kids it sits in the basket and they barely touch it, so that’s a good thing for us!
I spoke with Ray’s kids for our television piece and they told me all about their Star Wars costumes. It seems their dad however is the biggest fan of Halloween, dressing up and accompanying them on their trick-or-treat escapades. “I love to dress up. And the kids in the neighborhood, they think it might be me, but I’m always covered up. In most of the happier and nicer costumes the faces are shown, so I got to be something villainous. And it has to be scary, so when kids walk by me they don’t usually recognize me til’ they cross the street away from me!”
Though Allen wouldn’t reveal his costume choice for this year saying, “I can’t give away my position!’, it’s safe to say it will be frightening. So if you see a 6’5” villain with four little Star Wars characters in your South Florida neighborhood this Halloween, it’s a good bet it’s your favorite former Miami HEAT great Ray Allen.
Yeahh– we did a story on them. Their family is amazing
I remember the story about their son. My kids are the same with candy.. they hoard it, organize it.. but then it just sits in the pantry! hahaha
Halloween’s tough for peanut allergies too… 🙁
Reading this, it occurred to me that my kids rarely eat their candy, either. My brother and I would eat all the good stuff on Halloween night, and hoard the rest in our rooms. My children willingly give me their baskets (to keep in the pantry), and then seem to forget about them. I bet my husband and I (uh-oh) eat more of it than they do!
What a great family! My kids dont eat all of the candy as well. The longer it sits the more likely i am to eat it!! Best wishes to you and your little ghouls 🙂 for a fun Halloween!
Awesome about the Star Wars costumes! And I relate – my kids love to collect the candy but they eat very little of it. I guess that’s a good thing.
Wow. I never knew how much work Type 1 diabetes was. Our girls never really finish their Halloween/Easter/Valentine’s Day candy. Though they would devour it if we let them. Eventually, though, they forget about it, and it’s not that big of a deal for them.
Aww that’s adorable! I have to say my kids are the same way with candy – it just kinda chills in the bag in the pantry and they’re cool with me handing it out to them piece by piece on nights when they finish their dinner. They love it, but it’s not like when I was little, so true.
I also love that he gets dressed up!! I sham on Halloweens and feel accomplished if I can get both my kids in an actual costume…..this year was a success! Little Miss Muffet and a spider! 🙂
Have a happy Halloween!!
Looking back when I was still a kid, I don’t eat much of the candies as well. Just by looking on how much is in my bucket makes me happy and the fact of wearing costumes is totally awesome.
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Costumes are fun! We can be kids again!
I have been a Ray Allen fan for a long time, especially since his Seattle days, however i was not aware of his child’s health condition. I appreciate the post for enlighting me with some new information.