2008 Olympic balance beam gold-medalist Shawn Johnson join NBA All-Star and Utah Jazz point guard Deron Williams and St. Louis Cardinal slugger and three-time MVP Albert Pujols as the latest celebrities to don the famous Milk Mustache to inspire teens to "Drink Milk for a Change."
The new "dream team"of athletes is calling on teens to get active, drink milk for a positive change in themselves and make a difference for others. They have teamed up with the "got milk?"(R) Campaign and NBA Cares, the NBA’s social responsibility initiative. Each will champion a worthy project that’s close to their hearts and that will help make a positive change in local communities. Teens can help select which project will be completed by voting online at BodyByMilk.com. One lucky teen and three friends will even win the chance to work alongside professional athletes on the winning project.
Johnson’s " Project SHINE" emphasizes the importance of a good education. Johnson wants teens to back her in helping kids in Detroit, Mich., shine from the inside out by renovating a school or learning center to give them a brighter future. High unemployment in Detroit has prioritized the need for stronger education.
Williams urges teens to get behind "Project REPLENISH" and help build a new basketball court in San Antonio, Texas, that will help kids develop healthy exercise habits. Pujols want teens to help him and "Project BUILD" lift one family of flood victims from northwest and south central Georgia out of homelessness and into a new home built by hand from the ground up.
Teens can log on to BodyByMilk.com to view videos of each athlete making a case for his/her respective project and vote for the project they most want to see NBA Cares complete.
Johnson, Williams and Pujols will appear in their own "got milk?" print ads, school banners and posters. They join the ranks of more than 290 other athletes, actors, models and musicians who have lent their upper lips in support of milk and its health benefits. For more information, go to www.bodybymilk.com.