You have a chance to win a super sized print of Bryant-Denny Stadium autographed by Coach Saban and The Crimson Tide! Saturday, July 5th, Jupiter Bar will give away a 4 foot autographed print of Bryant-Denny Stadium autographed by Nick Saban and the team. To enter register here.

All Proceeds will be donated to the Austin Shepherd Foundation to help fund the Beads of Courage program at Children's of Alabama in Birmingham. Austin played OL for UA

 

 

Form shepfoundation.org:

How ASF got started:

Austin Shepherd says.  I met Jenna King my freshman year in college and we started dating a year later. As we got closer, I learned that her older brother, Jon, had passed away after a 14-year fight against bone cancer. He was 24 when he passed, and Jenna was nine. She always talked about her brother and about the hope and love that helped him survive so long.

In September of 2012, we decided we wanted to get involved with the hospital he spent his life in, Children's of Alabama in Birmingham. We contacted family services and set up a time to visit and do activities with the children and their families. That was a life-changing experience for me. I met one family who had been living in the hospital for nine weeks, fighting to save their blind and very sick daughter. The family told me about how they would be home for a week, then travel to Cincinnati, Ohio for more treatment. I could not imagine the stress of that experience. We saw children under a year old who were already starting their fights against life-threatening diseases, and we saw toddlers walking around with IV stands. It was a reality check that made me appreciate my life and abilities more than ever before.

The kids, families, and even the nurses were so thankful for our visit. The kids loved the crafts and the goodie bags we brought, and we were able to begin building relationships with the families. A 16-year-old girl who had just had colon surgery took a picture with me and said, "Man, my friends are going to be so jealous! I guess there are perks to being so sick!" It was great to know that I had made her day better just by being there.

    I had been talking with Jenna and my family about starting a foundation to help others for a while. After the visit, I told Jenna that this was going to be my foundation. I want to help save the lives of these children and I want to help them to see that life is worth fighting for. We formally launched ASF on October 18, 2012; the 11 year anniversary of Jon King's death.

 

More From 95.3 The Bear