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On Wednesday, Tina Charles was named the 2025 recipient of the Dawn Staley Community Award in recognition of “her extraordinary commitment to service, social justice, and creating lasting impact in the communities she serves,” the WNBA announced. She also received the honor back in 2012.
Charles, a 2010 UConn graduate and current member of the Connecticut Sun, placed her 500th Automated External Defibrillator (AED) through her Hopey’s Heart Foundation. The organization works to provide AEDs to schools, recreation centers and communities so they can potentially save people who experience sudden cardiac arrest. Charles founded Hopey’s Heart in 2012 to honor her late aunt, Maureen “Hopey” Vaz. Alongside the award, the WNBA will donate $10,000 to the organization.
“Through my mother at a young age, I learned the importance of being a servant unto others, and receiving the Dawn Staley Community Leadership Award is truly special for me — especially for Hopey’s Heart Foundation to receive this honor through its work in raising awareness for sudden cardiac arrest,” Charles said in a release. “I started the foundation in April of 2013 and never thought its impact would cast as wide as it has. I’m thankful to everyone who has supported the foundation along the way. Thank you.”
This past year, Yale New Haven Health pledged $20,000 towards AED distribution, which allowed the foundation to reach the aforementioned milestone. Charles also created a rebounding initiative where fans pledge a donation for every rebound she reels in.
It’s been an eventful week for Charles. In addition to the award, she recently became the WNBA’s all-time leader in made field goals. She already owns the league’s top mark for career rebounds and is second behind only Diana Taurasi on the all-time scoring list.
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