Family Ties
Recognizing National Adoption Month
Jockey International—the global apparel and retail giant once known for its cheeky ad campaigns featuring pro-sports athletes—is today backing a deeper and much more personal mission: Supporting “forever” families through the Jockey Being Family Foundation.
It’s a cause that has remained as true to Jockey’s roots as its Kenosha, Wisconsin headquarters, located in the same historic brick mill where it has stood since the early nineteen hundreds. It’s no surprise that the company’s earliest origins involve family—founded by a father and later his two sons—whom later incorporated as the Cooper Underwear Company.
Today, Chairman and CEO, Debra Waller continues to promote family by making it her mission to help children, as she herself was adopted as an infant. Since she started the Foundation in 2005, Jockey Being Family has helped more than 330,000 families, funded 5,250 college scholarships, supplied more than 25,000 of its signature kids backpacks and contributed nearly $7 million dollars to its non-profit partners in support of adoptive families.
“Underneath it all, it’s about giving every child a place they can call home,” says Will Waller, Program Director for the Foundation.
And for Bubba Watson, there’s simply no place like home. Every November, his family calendar grows busier while he and his wife, Angie, spread their powerful message about family and a sense of belonging during National Adoption Month.
“This is a cause that is near and dear to my heart,” says Watson, who together with wife Angie has two adopted children, Caleb and Dakota. “Most people know me for winning golf tournaments, but they don’t know my passion for family and for adoption. The adoption process has been a tough road, a fun road, a learning experience, a happy road. And I have felt so many different emotions that I had never dreamed of and never thought of, but I appreciate every one of them,” says Watson.
“What most people don’t realize is that an estimated one out of 10 adoptions fail, sending kids back into foster care. Even one failed adoption is one too many.”
November is National Adoption month. To learn more, visit Jockeybeingfamily.com