Cole Hamels Returns To Philly, Donates $95,000 To Roxborough School

In 2008, Cole Hamels and his devastating change-up carried the Phillies, and the city of Philadelphia, to their first world championship in decades. Eight years later, Hamels, now based in Texas and playing for the Rangers, has found an even more powerful way to ennoble and elevate the city of brotherly love: education.

Hamels and his wife Heidi were at Roxborough's W.B. Saul High School for Agricultural Sciences on Thursday, where they presented a check for $95,000 to help renovatethe school's greenhouse structures. The Hamels family has now donated more than $1 million to the Philadelphia School District as a whole.

"This is a great day for us," Hamels said at a school assembly, crediting his Foundation's board for helping him and his wife determine where to give. "And I do believe we have chosen the right school. You guys have done a phenomenal job - teachers, staff, students - you guys are really putting in a tremendous amount of effort."

"I'm excited for our students to meet Cole Hamels and Heidi, but I'm more excited they get to meet our amazing students," William Hite, the Superintendent of the Philadelphia School District, said as he introduced the Hamels'.

Jess McAtamney, a Saul teacher and grant writer, was crucial in helping land the donation. The donation was made as part of the 2016 Partners in Education Grant Awards.

The Hamels Foundation sponsors education initiatives across the globe, in locations around the country and in the African nation of Malawi.

Saul is located at 7100 Henry Avenue in Roxborough.

Image courtesy the School District of Philadelphia.