AJ didn’t want the money for himself. When he was named Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year as a high school freshman, it came with a $1,000 cash prize. He thought about Brazzaville, the capital of Congo, and how his father, Ace, and his wife, Chelsea, used a trip to give their son perspective on their life back in Brockton and the importance of giving back to the community. So, when the Gatorade check arrived, AJ didn’t know what to do with it. Keeping it didn’t feel right.
He asked his father, “Do it for your heart. Don’t take the money. That will come later.”
Ever since then, AJ has done things differently.
“Aren’t no plan B,” he said. “When I was in sixth grade, he said, ‘Dad, I’m not going to BU.’ I said, ‘God, I love you.'”
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