Nick Saban back in Bryant Denny Stadium to give away $625k to local charities
Nick Saban may have retired from football, but he's made it clear he's staying in the business of giving back.
"I'm proud of what we've been able to do and hopefully we will continue to do more in the future," the former Crimson Tide head coach said. "Even though I have retired from football, I have not retired from Nick's Kids."
gave away over $625,000 to local charities at their annual giveaway luncheon.
The money will go to organizations focused on giving back to children and families. , one of the charities receiving money, is an organization dedicated to children ages 2-6 with developmental disabilities.
"Mitchell's Place is essentially a one-stop shop for all things autism and developmental disabilities," Bree Hester said. "So we're really an organization that's unique in the sense that we have an early learning pre-K component and an early education that's an inclusive model for both neurotypical children as well as children with special needs."
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The organization has been especially helpful for families like John Runyan's whose son Coleman was diagnosed with autism at the age of two.
"Mitchell's place has been just enormous for his development," Runyan said. " Coleman was diagnosed with autism a little before three years old. He started Mitchell's Place in August of that year, and he may have said two words and wasn't trying to say anything more than that. Within six months, he was piecing words together and creating his own sentences. Developmentally, it's been just wonderful for him and his diagnosis."
Runyan said he's grateful for people like Nick and Terry Saban who are so committed to giving back to their community.
"The fact that somebody is supporting the school that my son gone to that has helped him so much, it means so much," he said.
The Sabans have committed to giving back to children in the community.
"It's about the kids," Nick Saban said. "It's always been all about the kids."
has been a long-time recipient of the Saban's generosity. Chandler Bibb with the hospital said she never realized how many other organizations had been helped by the family.
"On behalf of Children's Hospital, we know how supportive they are of us," Bibb said. "We looked around the room today and saw so many other organizations who have benefited from their generosity. It's just incredible what they've done for the community."
Some of the most notable Nick's Kids projects include the , Habitat for Humanity homes and Nick's Kids playgrounds. Saban said the foundation's greatest accomplishment is how it's inspired Crimson Tide players to give back as well.
"Probably the greatest accomplishment of [Nick's Kids] was the opportunity that it gave so many of our players through the years to give back to the community," Saban said.
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Along with that statement, Saban reminisced on how his players have given back throughout the years.
"One of my proudest accomplishments is that there are memories and all that too like DJ Fluker driving a bulldozer that Mike Thompson donated when we had the tornado in 2011. Whether it was Tua being up on a ladder working on a scaffold and I had to tell Mrs. Terry 'Can we give him a job on the ground?' What I'm proudest of from all that is how many players we have that represented this program that now have foundations of their own," Saban said.
Since arriving in Tuscaloosa, the Sabans, through the Nick's Kids Foundation, have given nearly $13 million to the community.