Speaking at the Little Kitchen Academy in Los Angeles on Wednesday

Nine-time NBA All-Star Russell Westbrook has announced a new partnership with Little Kitchen Academy to launch the Changing Lives from Scratch Fund that plans to give over 10,000 kids and teens from underserved communities grants, scholarships, and resources to learn culinary skills and more.

A release for this new partnership detailed that Little Kitchen Academy is “the leading Montessori-inspired cooking academy for kids ages 3-18 providing a safe and empowering environment to learn practical life skills, confidence, independence, and healthy eating habits to last a lifetime.”

Speaking at the Little Kitchen Academy in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Westbrook said, “I’ve been blessed with an opportunity to be able to have a platform… I feel like it’s my duty to be able to show the kids that don’t have access to certain things, to find partners and people to give them access… I’ll continue to do that until I can’t no more.”

Little Kitchen Academy is something Westbrook has seen positively impact his own kids, which is why he wanted to help expand this impact.

“Nina and I take our kids to Little Kitchen Academy, and we have seen the incredible impact these classes have on children and teens. I am committed to providing access to LKA classes to kids who may not otherwise have the opportunity to participate,” Westbrook said, per the official release for this new partnership.

“I’m excited to partner with their team to launch the Changing Lives from Scratch Fund because every child deserves the opportunity to develop practical life skills and learn healthy eating habits,” Westbrook added. “Our goal is to go beyond the traditional classroom and empower children with the essential skills to create their own meals, increase their confidence, and inspire a lifelong love of healthy cooking, setting kids up for success in the kitchen and beyond.”

Speaking on Wednesday, Westbrook also shared the importance of pouring into the youth, and how this new partnership will be able to do that.

As Westbrook emphasized, this partnership plans to give over 10,000 kids and teens the opportunity to experience Little Kitchen Academy in the next year. This Changing Lives from Scratch Fund will help provide the resources necessary to make that a possibility.

Involved in several different community initiatives throughout his NBA career, Westbrook will continue his off the court work as he heads from the LA Clippers to the Denver Nuggets.