Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley is providing for the youth athletic experience. Twelve years removed from helping lead Saginaw High School to a Michigan state championship, Woodley decided to give back to the community in a very important way.
Hardly in an uncommon situation, Saginaw schools are facing budget cuts and these cuts were going to force students to pay a $75 participation fee to play sports, as it was mentioned on this website earlier. That kind of stuff was unheard of in 2000 when Woodley was at Saginaw. And since he's made it big enough in the NFL, covering the $60,000 bill was something he was fortunate to be able to pull off.
Saginaw High athletic director Dan Szatkowski spoke with gratitude in an interview with MLive.com.
"People can make the argument that it wasn't going to hurt participation, but it was. Because of this, kids will have an opportunity to participate, an opportunity to be part of a team. People don't understand how important that is.
"It's a tough time, but here's a professional player who gets it," he continued. "This is a big deal. He's providing the means for kids to participate. What's the price you can put on that? What price do you put on an experience? LaMarr Woodley is providing for that experience."
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