A local mans dreams for a foundation to support Cerebral Palsy will take a huge step in the right direction coming up on Saturday as supporters in Cherokee County fill the Recreational Outreach Center in Centre for the A.J. Starr Hometown Kickoff Fundraising Banquet.
The event will begin at 6 p.m. and is being sponsored by family and friends of Starr. Tickets are $25 each; tables for eight are $175. Guest speaker will be former University of Alabama Football player Rudy Griffin.
Starr was born with cerebral palsy, yet learned to drive a farm tractor and started helping his family cultivate their land at an early age. The disease was more of a hurdle to him than something standing in his way.
A.J. is a 2010 graduate of Cherokee County High School and finished two years at Gadsden State Community College before obtaining one of his major goals of attending the University of Alabama.
He received a bachelor’s degree last month; this fall he plans to pursue an MBA in sports management while continuing his work in the Crimson Tide’s equipment room.
Rudy Griffin dominated as a starting defensive tackle for the University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide from 2003-2006, where he earned his B.S. in Human Performance. At Alabama he was a captain for the 2006 Cotton Bowl and a member of the 2005 Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll. Griffin is a native of Hepzibah, Ga., where he played for Hepzibah High School. His amazing story of self determination and unrelenting hope is definitely one for the history books.
The year was 2004. Following an Alabama red-shirt season after transferring from The Citadel, Rudy earned himself a scholarship and a starting position. Rudy started 22 of his 24 game Tide career, and did not miss the field in one of them. His stats and incredible work ethic are recorded in the hallowed halls of the Bryant Museum in Tuscaloosa, and unforgettable to his many Tide coaches and teammates.
His story of perseverance and dedication to a dream made him a natural in the coaching environment. After a few engagements with NFL programs such as Buffalo Bills, and the Miami Dolphins, Griffin had several offers to coach at the collegiate level. He has coached with programs throughout the US including South Dakota State in Madison, South Dakota, Washington State University in Pullman, Wash, Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho, Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas, and currently Birmingham Southern College, here in Alabama. He is an electrifying coach who has a passion that ignites fires in all the young men he coaches. His style on the coaching field today is fast paced and hearts full. He encourages his teams to fight through physical, mental and spiritual barriers because he believes they can.
Griffin also has high school coaching experience under his belt. He taught and was the Defensive Coordinator at Demopolis High School in Demopolis, Ala., from 2008-2010, helping DHS take the 2009 5A State title. Griffin has also taught and coached at Worth County High School in Sylvester, Ga.
Rudy Griffin is active in his church family and believes that coaching young men IS his ministry. He shares his life with his beautiful family; his wife, Kimiko and their four children Kimari, Kai, Genesis, and Amelie.