The Nick’s Kids Fund, in partnership with Habitat for Humanity, has raised roughly $800,000 to be used to rebuild homes in Alberta City in the wake of the April 27 tornado that ravaged Tuscaloosa in 2011.
The fund, initially called “13 for 13”, was meant to raise money to rebuild 13 houses, one for each of Alabama football’s national championships. Following the Tide’s 14th national championship in the BCS title game against LSU in January, the fund was renamed 14 for 14, and plans to raise money for a 14th house have begun.
At the Nick’s Kids sixth-annual golf tournament at the Old Overton Golf Club in Vestavia Hills, Ala., head coach Nick Saban and his wife Terry presented a check worth $75,000 for that 14th and final house.
The cost to build each family a new home is about $70,000-$80,000. The construction of the first 10 houses has already been completed, while Habitat for Humanity is putting the finishing touches on houses 11 and 12. Construction on houses 13 and 14 has already started, with the families scheduled to move into their homes in August.
Bob Johnson, the Tuscaloosa executive director of Habitat for Humanity, said the Nick’s Kids Fund has meant a lot for the families who lost their homes in the wake of the tornado.
“I know the family, and it’s a family that lived right in the middle of Alberta City,” Johnson said. “They lost everything in the tornado. They’re a hardworking family. They’re paying $750 a month for rent right now and barely getting by. But what this means for them is they’ll own their home for the first time, and their monthly payment will be $350 a month, so it’ll be a new start for them.”
Saban was quick to divert any attention away from himself, instead citing his late father as the inspiration for the charity.
“Well, everybody thinks this Nick’s Kids is all about me,” Saban said. “But it really is about my dad and his legacy and trying to sort of enhance his legacy and memory, from when he started back in West Virginia when he started Pop Warner football.
“And my mother always said, ‘If you can do anything, and you’re ever in a position to help young people, that’s what your dad wanted to do, and I wish you would do it.’”
Still, Johnson said the Nick’s Kids Fund has been worth much more than the money it has raised.
“There’s 13 other families who have had their lives changed by the partnership the Sabans have had with Habitat,” Johnson said. “And it truly has been life-changing for our affiliate and for those families.”
Saban said his plans to help with the tornado relief efforts haven’t ended with the 14 for 14 project. He said he still has ongoing plans to help raise money for tornado relief in the future.
“I think we gave away $1.2 million last year to tornado relief,” Saban said. “Half of that money was actually contributed by people who are in this group today… Our goal is to be able to give a half a million more dollars to kid’s organizations in Alabama and all over the Southeast.
“I don’t think their need is going to go away, and if it doesn’t go away, our desire to help them isn’t going to go away. So, that’s kind of our plan for the future. If we’re able to do it, we’ll do more.”
