Reggie and Kim are friends of the diamond industry and are active members of the Diamond Empowerment Fund (DEF). DEF was founded by Russell Simmons who visited Botswana in 2006 as a guest of De Beers. The organisation is a non-profit international organisation founded in 2007 with the mission to raise money to support education initiatives that develop and empower economically disadvantaged people in African nations where diamonds are a natural resource.
During their stay in Botswana, the couple visited Debswana's Jwaneng Mine, Diamond Trading Company Botswana and Motswedi Rehabilitation Centre which has a long-standing relationship with Debswana. The Centre is also financially aided by the Government of Botswana.
When introducing Reggie and Kim to Motswedi, Sheila Khama, the CEO of De Beers Botswana, referred to them as 'friends of Botswana' and said that she the hoped that they would share the story of the good diamonds have done for Botswana with family and friends in the USA.
For his part, Reggie said, "This trip to Africa is a tremendous learning experience for me -- not only about the history of this great continent, but also about the many people who are committing their time and effort to improve people's lives. The people of the Diamond Empowerment Fund have been generous in their time to show us the great strides that have been made, but also the amount of work left to do. It is an experience that will forever be with me and continue to shape my life".
Before leaving the centre, Reggie pledged more than P300,000.00 as a donation to help the handicapped children of the rehabilitation centre. Also present during the visit to Motswedi were Former President Mogae who is the Advisory Board Member of the Diamond Empowerment Fund, the United States Head of Mission to Botswana, Ambassador Nolan, the CEO of the DEF, Ellen Haddigan and the Chairperson of the Board of Motswedi Rehabilitation Centre Modiegi Monyatso.
