Pittsburgh Steelers inside linebacker Mark Barron gave back to people in his home state for the fourth consecutive year, sponsoring the distribution of 1,500 turkeys Saturday.
Barron's representatives gave away the Thanksgiving birds at Prichard City Hall and in Toulminville, AL.com reported.
Barron, who starred at the University of Alabama and was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2012 NFL draft, signed with the Steelers as a free agent in 2019.
Barron was unable to attend Saturday's giveaway, as he was in Cincinnati as the Steelers prepared to face the Bengals on Sunday.
Michelle Barron, his mother, said it was "a great honor" to pass out turkeys again, AL.com reported.
"When the kids were younger, we had to go to the Catholic Social Services or the Salvation Army," Michelle Barron told AL.com. "When we first started, I was like, 'Mark, do you think a turkey's going to be enough?' He said, 'Yeah, Mama, when I was small, I was looking for that turkey.'
"I think it's a real privilege for him, and I think a lot of my son for doing this, because he don't have to, so it's a real privilege."
Together Assisting People Inc. coordinated the event and tapped into the Mobile Kappa League to do much of the heavy lifting in loading and unloading the turkeys.
"We're able to be hands on the ground, boots on the ground for him," Chris Rogers, the organization's founder, told AL.com, "and create his vision, what he wants to do for his community. And that's the biggest thing that he wanted -- to make sure his people know that he loves him. And we love doing this."
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