Bedford-native and NBA veteran Myles Turner returned to Dallas in September to present a $1 million check to local nonprofit Empowering the Masses, a North Texas organization that provides community members with workforce training, life skills, and nutritional services.
Turner’s donation comes through his Work As Role Models (W.A.R.M.) Foundation to support Empowering the Masses’ effort in addressing food insecurity—the organization operates a community market that distributes affordable groceries near Samuell-Grand Park.
Turner was introduced to the organization through a family-friend who volunteered and got involved himself in 2021.
But Turner, who is now on the Milwaukee Bucks after spending 10 years with the Indiana Pacers, says his philanthropic involvement with the organization started with a petty response to a disgruntled fan.
After Turner played a subpar game, a fan tagged him in a post on X—then known as Twitter—asking Turner to Venmo him $100. Turner did Venmo that fan—but just a penny. To support the center, fans joined in on the fun flooding Turner’s Venmo with pennies. Some sent $1, some sent $5, and some even sent $10. He collected these payments and matched them, eventually raising $100,000 and donating it to Empowering the Masses.
“What started as me just being a little petty actually turned into a community activation,” Turner said. These funds supported North Texans during Winter Storm Uri in 2021 to provide grocery deliveries and hotel stays.
Now, his $1 million pledge will provide Empowering the Masses with $100,000 per year over the next 10 years to keep the nonprofit’s day-to-day operations running, including stocking ingredients for balanced meals at the community market. Turner’s donation is expected to feed about 500 families per week.
“This investment is going to give us an opportunity to be able to provide those services with dignity [while being] well-rounded,” said Tammy Johnson, who founded Empowering the Masses in 2018.
According to recent federal filings, Empowering the Masses generated about $759,000 in revenue in 2024 and recorded about $878,000 in expenses. It had about $245,000 in total assets at the end of the year. Past donors have included Wells Fargo and United Way, but the longevity of Turner’s donation is historic.
“This is the first time somebody has decided to invest in us [for this long],” Johnson told D CEO.
Author
Maria Lawson
Maria Lawson is the senior associate editor of D CEO, the business title for D Magazine. She started her career at our sister publication, People Newspapers, and has since written for ESPN, the Washington Post, and the Dallas Business Journal. A proud double-eagle, she got her master’s degree in investigative journalism at American University and bachelor’s degrees in journalism and sociology from the University of North Texas. When she’s not on the job, she can be found trying new fitness classes, maxing out her library card, and attempting to make Dallas walkable.
