By Bill Koch
Enquirer staff reporter

Bob Huggins, the often vociferous University of Cincinnati basketball coach, speaks in almost a whisper when he talks about the work he does in the community.

"I just thought that's what everybody was supposed to do," Huggins said. "I thought you were supposed to give back to the community. I grew up like that."

GOOD SPORTS

• Making a difference • Cris Collinsworth • Danny Graves • Bob Huggins • Marvin Lewis • Anthony Muñoz • Tim Naehring • Doug Pelfrey • Sean Casey • Willie Anderson

Huggins has been one of the most active of this area's athletic celebrities when it comes to donating his time and fund-raising ability to local charitable causes.

He began his fund-raising efforts by hosting the Bob Huggins Celebrity Golf Classic to benefit the Arthritis Foundation. He has raised an estimated $400,000 for that organization, according to Bill Mulvihill, senior associate athletic director at UC and a trustee emeritus of the Arthritis Foundation.

It was Mulvihill who first enlisted Huggins' help in raising money for arthritis research, which in turn got him involved in other community projects.

"He not only raised money," Mulvihill said, "he raised awareness of arthritis as a disease."

Huggins then shifted his attention to Tim Naehring's Athletes Reaching Out and became its chief source of funds when it was going through some hard times financially.

"Bob was probably the reason why ARO continued over the last four or five years," Naehring said. "He's done a lot more than anybody would know."

Huggins' most recent project is the renovation of the Emanuel Community Center at 13th and Race, for which his foundation has donated $85,000 in addition to helping to locate corporate sponsors, according to Judi Sturwold, former chief executive officer of ARO.

"I wanted to do something downtown that would help kids," Huggins said, "and they do a great job down there. The biggest kick you get is seeing kids and knowing that maybe you had a part in making some kids' lives better."

Last year Huggins discontinued his golf outing in the aftermath of his September 2002 heart attack and because he wanted to be near his mother, who passed away last spring from cancer.

But he continues to donate the money he makes from commercial endorsements and speaking engagements to an assortment of charities.

His speaking engagements bring in roughly $2,500 to $8,000 each, according to Sturwold, depending on whether it's national or local. He has reduced the number of speaking engagements recently but at one time did about 25 per year.

He also frequently donates autographed items for auction to local fund-raising groups such as church festivals and other community groups.