Quavo and the Rocket Foundation have established an emergency trauma therapy fund after 49 people were shot in one weekend last month.
Billboard reports that two of the shooting victims had a clear connection to the Rocket Foundation: Deshawn Johnson, 18, who went to Rocket Camp in 2024, and “Coach Ball,” an Offender Alumni leader, were both killed by gun violence on July 24.
All donations to the Fund, according to the organization, will be used to provide mental health services and therapy support to the children and young people in the communities impacted by the tragedy.
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The Rocket Foundation wrote to Instagram, “After the tragic weekend in Atlanta, where at least 49 people were shot, including the tragic loss of Rocket Foundations 2024 Rocket Camper Deshawn Cooper and Rocket spark grantee leader of Offenders Alumni Association, Coach Ball, Rocket Foundation is creating an emergency trauma therapy fund for the youth and families impacted.”
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The organization continued with a call-to-action: “These resources will go directly to two of our Spark Grantees @cureviolenceoaaa and @hope.hustlers working directly with those impacted. Please honor the pain and loss of those impacted by spreading the world and donating! Nothing can replace those lost, but together we can help our community heal in this trying time.”
The 43-year-old Quavo founded the Rocket Foundation in 2022, soon after his nephew and Migos running mate TakeOff was killed by a gunshot.
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This is not the first time Quavo has expressed his enthusiasm for the cause. In 2024, Quavo received the title of “Humanitarian of the Year” at the eighth annual Variety Hitmakers Brunch in recognition of his advocacy against gun violence.
That same year, the Rocket Foundation set up Sparks Grants, which awarded $10,000 to ten Atlanta organizations dedicated to making neighborhoods safer. Quavo also teamed with the Offender Alumni Association to offer a music education program for at-risk youth as part of the Rocket Camp initiative.
Quavo’s efforts at the national level helped to establish the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention.
He organized the first Rocket Foundation Summit on Gun Violence Prevention in Atlanta after speaking with then-Vice President Kamala Harris at the Congressional Black Caucus legislative meeting in September 2023. Quavo also participated in a rally in support of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which is one of the most comprehensive federal gun control laws in U.S. history.
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