Showing their love: celebs reveal the first gifts they've given mom

Jet, May 14, 2007 by Clarence Waldron, Margena A. Christian, Melody K. Hoffman, Marti Parham, Dana Slagle

As the nation celebrates Mother's Day, stars reflect here on the vital roles their mothers have played in their success and some of the first and most memorable gifts they've presented them.

DWYANE WADE on JOLINA WADE:

"It was always my dream to get my mother a house," said the Miami Heat All-Star gaaard. "She never lived in one, so I got her a nice house ... My mother never actually really drove before so she wanted to get her license ... She wanted to learn how to drive, so I helped teach her and bought her a car. I let her drive my Range Rover a couple of times. It was a little scary ... and now she has her license. She's rolling."

FANTASIA on DIANE BARRINO:

"The first gift I got her was a Navigator truck," said the former "American Idol" winner, who is now starring as Celie on Broadway in The Color Purple.

CLARA on JACKIE HARRIS:

"The first gift I purchased for my mom when I made it was a Louis Vuitton bag," said the multi-platinum singer. "It was her first LV bag and it felt so good to be able to do that for her. I think I was almost as happy as my mom about the gift!"

AKON on KINE THIAM:

"I bought my mother a car, the 750 BMW," the singer/songwriter/producer said. She inspired him because he said, "I completely turned my life around. I wanted my mother to be proud of me. I went from being a troubled convict to a successful young man, a son she can brag about. I wanted to make sure I did it while she was young and healthy, so she can enjoy the success with me."

VANESSA WILLIAMS on HELEN WILLIAMS:

"I bought her some really good jewelry, which is what she loves," said the "Ugly Betty" star. "I was also able to give her a Mercedes 450 SL on her 60th birthday and a trip to South Africa for her retirement."

BOW WOW on TERESA CALDWELL:

"One of the first things I bought my mother was a diamond Chopard watch with floating diamonds and I had "Be Happy" engraved on the back," he said about his room, who also owns the popular Taste clothing boutique in Duluth, GA.

BEN GORDON on YVONNE GORDON:

"A car. A big red Hummer. That's what she wanted," recalled one of the Chicago Bulls leading scorers. "I asked her a while back (before he was drafted) and she already had in her mind what she wanted. I was surprised when she told me she wanted a Hummer, so I just got it for her for Christmas."

RAVEN-SYMONE on LYDIA PEARMAN:

"The best gift I ever gave was a poem I wrote in the third grade, because it came from my heart," said the "That's So Raven" star. "Almost every word was spelled incorrectly and my mom went back to the teacher and asked why she let a poem with all those misspelled words come home with me. She still has the poem to this day ... My mom has in spired me by giving me the strength to tackle anything that comes nay way. She followed her dreams, so that inspired me to follow mine."

TYRESE on PRISCILLA MURRAY:

"Life is a gift and that's what my mother gave me, so I wanted to give her a comfortable life. I gave my mother her dream home in my new neighborhood so that we could see each other all the time," said the singer.

VIVICA A. FOX on EVERLYENA FOX:

"I bought her some sapphire and white diamonds," said the actress, who is currently touring in the theatre production, Whatever She Wants. "That's not even important to her now. She asks for money to send my niece and nephew to private school because she wants to make sure they get the best education."

KYLE MASSEY on ANGEL MASSEY:

"The best gift I ever gave my mom was a snow globe with a double-sided picture in the middle," said the "Colby in the House" star. "The picture was taken by a friend of the family of me, my brother Christopher and my dad. The picture on the other side was of my dad when he was in college."

AVANT on ALBERTA AVANT: "The best gift I gave her was a life-changing gift, a house. She was the first one to introduce me to my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. And she gave me a code of ethics on how to take care of myself and what I need to do out here to survive."

--Clarence Waldron, Margena A. Christian, Melody K. Hoffman, Marti Parham and Dana Slagle contributed to this story