Dwyane Wade surprises Waffle House shooting hero on 'Ellen'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dwyane Wade, left, shocked James Shaw Jr. when he turned up during Shaw's "Ellen" appearance. (The Ellen DeGeneres Show)
The Waffle House shooting hero received a special surprise Monday on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” in the form of a visit from his idol: NBA star Dwyane Wade.
James Shaw Jr., 29, was deemed a hero after he successfully disarmed a shooter who opened fire at a Tennessee Waffle House last month. The man also created a GoFundMe page to raise money for the victims’ families. The fundraiser has raised more than $200,000.
Shaw told DeGeneres that Wade was his favorite basketball player right before the Miami Heat star appeared. Shaw gave Wade a long hug before the two spoke.
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Wade asked Shaw, “What he would like to see as a result from the tragedy?”
"What I want to see come from all this is, it's a public health problem that we have, it's a mental health problem that the United States as a whole has," Shaw said. "One in five individuals in the United States suffer from some kind of mental disorder, and that's close to like 45 million people. That's a very large and eye-raising problem. So I want to bring some kind of awareness to it. … If I can help that problem, then I think that's what I should do."
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The NBA star gave Shaw a check for $20,000 and told him he wanted to be a part of his effort.
"When I sit down with my kids, and I sit down and talk to them about role models, who I want them to look up to, I'd tell them to go look up James Shaw Jr.," Wade said. "Thanks for being there, man."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}On Wednesday, the White House announced it was hoping to set up a meeting with Shaw to honor his heroic act, Politico reported.