A 7-year-old Canadian boy's life was hard enough with cerebral palsy. But last week, his mother was stabbed to death, allegedly by her own boyfriend.

Enter the Heat's Jamaal Magloire, who may not be able to heal any emotional scars but is doing his best to help.

"I had to do something," Magloire said of the moment he heard about the murder of 28-year-old Lucita Charles in his hometown of Toronto. Charles had moved to Canada about five years ago from St. Lucia, seeking adequate medical care for her son. Her body was found on Monday, several hours after the boy was put on a specialized accessible bus and sent to school.

Magloire contacted Charles' sister and offered to pay for the funeral. Then, with help from a banker friend, he set up a trust fund for her son.
"It was never my intent for this to get out," Magloire told the Associate Press. "I just felt it was my duty to help. That's why I went to school, to study social work, to try to help people. When you can help people in a time of disarray, it's good for everybody, the people you're helping and the people who are doing the helping."

He said the boy's aunt was "relieved," something that's probably a bit of an understatement.

?>