DALLAS – While Alabama and Oklahoma tipped off the 2013-14 college basketball season as the first game in the Buckets and Boots Showcase on Friday, before the first horn sounded, the two teams met at mid-court to make a joint donation of $20,000 to the United Way of Norman, Okla., an effort to provide continued support in the wake of the devastating tornado that leveled parts of Moore, Okla., earlier this year.
On May 20, an EF5 tornado ripped through Moore and surrounding areas, killing 23 people and injuring nearly 400. The tornado was 1.3 miles wide and its peak winds were estimated at 210 miles per hour. Its path tore apart schools, homes, businesses and communities, leaving a ravaged area behind.
When this game was first arranged back in June – the first game of a tripleheader in Dallas to signify the start of the college basketball season – Coach Anthony Grant offered to donate a portion of Alabama’s event proceeds to OU’s charity of choice for tornado relief. After all, Grant witnessed first-hand the devastation from an EF4 tornado that hit the University of Alabama just two years earlier, one of 358 in a four-day April tornado outbreak that was unprecedented in U.S. history. That tornado’s path stretched 80 miles across Alabama, and after hitting Tuscaloosa continued into parts of Birmingham, leaving behind 64 dead, including six Alabama students, and more than $2 billion in property damage. Immediately after the April 2011 storms, Grant established the “Sweet Home Fund” for tornado relief, providing assistance for those who had lost their homes.
“What prompted the donation was the tornado that struck Oklahoma, since we went through a very similar thing here in Tuscaloosa,” Coach Grant said. “I reached out to Coach (Lon) Kruger and asked if there was anything that we could do to try and assist the people there and in the areas that were devastated by the tornado. He and I had a conversation and he asked me some advice on things that he could do in the aftermath from a long-term standpoint. Shortly thereafter, the opportunity to play came about and one of the things that I thought would be a good idea since we were playing each other and both of us faced similar tragedies was to reach out and see if we could use this opportunity to benefit those people that were affected by the tornado. Thankfully, the promoters with the event supported the idea, and Coach Kruger was on board as well. Hopefully, it will be money well used to help those in need.”
Once notified of the Crimson Tide’s intention to make the donation at the Buckets and Boots Showcase, Coach Kruger and the OU athletics department identified the United Way of Norman as the recipient, which the Sooners had worked closely with after this year’s Oklahoma twister. Then Kruger and the Sooner’s took it one step further by matching Alabama’s generous donation.
“What a wonderful gesture by Coach Grant and Alabama to assist the great people of Oklahoma affected by the tornado tragedies of last spring,” Kruger said, whose team responded with relief efforts immediately after the tornado hit, much like Bama’s squad had done two years earlier. “We appreciate their generosity and are pleased to have the opportunity to match their donation to the United Way for this tremendous cause.”
To date, more than $15.6 million has been donated or pledged through the United Way of Norman. Many of the funds have gone to support mental health and trauma counseling for adults and children, debriefing for first responders, restoration of treatment space used for youth counseling, as well as numerous other immediate needs.
Fund also have supported “House in a Box,” a program managed by St. Vincent DePaul in Norman which provides a list of household items and furniture for affected families.
“The outpouring of support following the May tornadoes has been remarkable,” said Kristin Collins, president of the United Way of Norman. “Not only were we blessed in the immediate aftermath of the storms, but we have continued to see such heartfelt generosity over the months that have followed. We are especially thankful to the University of Oklahoma and the OU Athletic Department for its ongoing efforts to provide for the people affected by May’s devastating storms. And we extend a big ‘thank you’ to the University of Alabama for participating in this special day of giving.”
Those interested in making a donation to the United Way of Norman’s May Tornado Relief Fund can contribute online at www.unitedwayokc.org, just click on “United Way of Central Oklahoma May Tornadoes Relief Fund” box.
