Charles Barkley donates $1K apiece to 200-plus staff of Alabama school district

Alabama native Charles Barkley donated $1,000 apiece to the 200-plus employees of the state’s Leeds City School District, according to an announcement by the district.

The Leeds City School system made the news known in a Facebook post shared this week.

“We are humbled and wish to express our sincere gratitude to Charles Barkley for providing a $1,000 gift to each and every Leeds City Schools employee for going the extra mile this school year,” the Facebook post read. “Being a school employee is tough, but driving a bus, teaching, coaching, or working in the cafeteria, all while maintaining safety protocols, has been a daunting task during a worldwide pandemic.”

According to an AL.com report, there are approximately 226 employees across the Leeds school system.

Barkley is of course well-known for his cantankerous, sometimes outrageous and frequently polarizing commentary on TNT’s iconic “Inside the NBA” studio show. What’s not known as well is Barkley is extremely loyal to his home state and cares deeply about the residents of Alabama as well as the Leeds City School system.

After graduating from Leeds High School in 1981 and amassing millions during his Hall of Fame NBA career, Barkley made sure the district benefited from his successes on the court and beyond. According to the above Facebook post, Barkley has “quietly and without any attention drawn to himself” donated more than $3 million in scholarships to Leeds graduates in the past 30 years, “funds that have helped hundreds of students attend college.”

Further, the post goes on to extol how Barkley “secured laptops for virtual learners, Wifi hotspots, and donations from Clorox Corporation to help the Leeds staff keep the facilities sanitary as we fight the pandemic this year.”

Barkley, 58, was born and raised in Leeds, which is located about 10 miles outside of Birmingham, before going on to collegiate stardom at Auburn. While Barkley failed to secure an NBA title during his 16-year career, Leeds’ favorite son was an NBA MVP (1993), 11-time All-Star and five-time member of the All-NBA First Team. He also won two gold medals as a member of the United States men’s basketball team, which included a starring role on the legendary “Dream Team” in 1992.