Born and raised in Oakland, Gary Payton Sr. grew up on cracked asphalt courts and in neighborhoods that demanded toughness, resilience, and heart. Those early years shaped the grit and edge that would carry him all the way to the NBA. The world would come to know him as “The Glove,” but long before the accolades and Hall of Fame honors, Gary was a kid from Oakland who never forgot where he came from — or who helped him get there.

In 1996, he started what is now called the Gary Payton Glove Foundation, not because he wanted to build something with his name on it, but because he wanted kids like the one he used to be to have more options than he did. Gary has always said that not every child is going to become an athlete — and that’s exactly the point. Through scholarships and educational support, his foundation helps young people pay for tuition, books, and the everyday costs that make college possible, whether their path runs through sports or somewhere entirely different. For Gary, education isn’t a backup plan. It’s the plan.

That belief — that access can change everything — sits at the center of his life’s work. It’s also why his story feels so deeply aligned with the mission of The Salvation Army. In the lives he’s touched and the futures he’s helped steady, Gary Payton Sr. has shown that lifting people up isn’t about grand gestures. It’s about showing up, again and again, and making sure someone else gets a real shot at what comes next.