Rory Vaden, MBA

2008 Youth Chair

Rory has been speaking for six years. He is the Vice President and Co-founder of Success Starts Now. In 2006 Rory was one of the top ten speakers in the world for Toastmasters International. Success Starts Now is a company that provides Professional Sales Training by way of large public seminars in the US and Europe. SSN's team of 20 people leverages the information and experience of its 150 year old parent organization The Southwestern Company. Rory directly oversees the youth speaking division of SSN and spends half of his time speaking to high school students about the old-fashioned principles of The Southwestern Company. Most of his programs are designed to help kids interpret the messages they learn in pop culture and to encourage them to be more disciplined.

Jerome Williams

2008 Youth Vice Chair

As an NBA Cares Community Ambassador, Jerome Williams works with community and youth-serving programs that support education, youth and family development, and health-related causes. After two seasons at Montgomery College (Md.), during which he worked at a local gas station to help finance his education, Williams transferred to Georgetown University and played for Hall of Fame coach John Thompson. He graduated from Georgetown in 1996, and stands among the top rebounders in school history.

In 1995, he joined Hoya teammates Allen Iverson and Othella Harrington as members of the World University Games team. Williams was selected 26th overall by the Detroit Pistons in the 1996 NBA Draft and his intensity and effort made him a fan favorite throughout the league. Williams appeared in over 500 games during his nine seasons and averaged 6.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. Nicknamed "Junk Yard Dog," he was a tenacious player on the court and was hailed often for his leadership and commitment to community service. His community outreach efforts earned him selection by The Sporting News as one of its "Good Guys in Sports" for 2002 and he was a finalist in 2000 for the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award.

In 1997, Jerome, along with his brother Johnnie, created Positive Shades of Black, which developed programs for youth of all grade levels teaching study habits and life skills. These programs have been implemented in the NBA cities of Detroit, New York, Toronto and Washington D.C.

Jerome also works with his brother on the Change the World Movement touring schools around the country, as well as continuing his acting career and hosting programming for MSG and NBA TV.