Kirby Smart's Family Foundation Making a Lasting Impact

Georgia's head football coach, Kirby Smart, and his wife Mary Beth have made it a point to continuously give back to the community around them through their foundation.

Kirby Smart has changed a good bit about the University of Georgia football program. In the four years he's been in Athens the school has drastically upgraded the facilities on campus, they've experienced a National Title game, and they've won three consecutive SEC East Division Titles — something that hasn't been done in the SEC since the days of The Ole Ball Coach down in Gainesville. 

Though it's not just changes in and around the football program that are making a lasting impact in Athens. 

The Kirby Smart Foundation was created shortly after the Smart family arrived in Athens in 2016 as a way of giving back to the community surrounding the program. Their mission "To be champions in our community by supporting and giving back to needy children and families facing adversity" encompasses exactly what they've accomplished since its inception. 

Their three-year pledge to the Navicent Health Foundation Children's Hospital in Macon, Georgia funded their new oncology center to treat and cure cancer patients. 

In 2019, the Kirby Smart foundation donated more than $300k to various causes in the local area from childhood cancer treatments to the local Boys & Girls Club. 

"Mary Beth and I have had a lot of people help us in our life time, and we look at this as an opportunity to give back. And we've been very blessed to have a foundation group and members who contribute to our foundation and allow us to give back to our community." - Kirby Smart 

It's been spearheaded by Smart's wife, Mary Beth. Both Mary Beth and Kirby didn't grow up with the privileges that they now have, so they've made it a point to continue to give back. 

"The first year we actually called the local places. We called the YMCA. We called the Boys & Girls Club and were like 'Hey, do you want some money,' and they were like SURE! So, it's kind of fun to read through the applications. What is amazing is seeing what everybody else is donating. What we are doing just feels like a small minuscule to what these people are doing every single day" Mary Beth Smart

To donate, visit https://www.kirbysmartfoundation.org

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