'Honored and blessed': Sarah and David Patterson earn Family of the Year award

Legendary University of Alabama gymnastics coach Sarah Patterson never had breast cancer. It is a common misconception since Patterson began the phenomenon that is the Power of Pink, which supports those suffering with breast cancer. Patterson did have a scare in 2004 that led her to want to support others.

The Power of Pink gymnastics meets established Sarah and David Patterson as forces in the community and across the nation, but it was Patterson's involvement with the United Way that truly put her in touch with Tuscaloosa community. That path has led them to be selected as the 2023 Alexis de Tocqueville Family of the Year by the United Way of West Alabama.

Sarah's cancer scare and David's actual bout with cancer in his right kidney is, however, what propelled them to really invest in helping others.

" I had some dense tissue, and they (the doctors) kept taking me in every three months for mammograms to test everything," Sarah Patterson said. "They did that for a couple of years then they backed off a little bit. I never had cancer, but it put me in a mental state where I was looking at al the people who were around me who were being told they had cancer or were trying to figure out how to pay for services if they didn’t have insurance. I think that’s what started me on the Power of Pink idea."

It was actually David Patterson who was diagnosed with cancer in 1996, shortly after the Crimson Tide women won a gymnastics national championship, one of six national titles UA earned during the Pattersons' tenure. He had injured his back in a fall while helping move equipment into the new gymnastics gymnasium at Coleman Coliseum. The doctor, wishing to be thorough in treating the injury to the left side of David's back, examined the right side as well, finding kidney cancer that, had it not been discovered soon enough, could have taken his life.

"About a week after the fall, Jordan (a daughter) was about 4 then, she got in bed with us one morning and she just barely touched my back and I hit the roof. Sarah said, 'You’re going to the doctor,' " David Patterson said.

After his recovery from cancer, David became involved in a bike ride to raise money for children with cancer. The 150-mile event, the Ride of Love, raised money for Camp Smile-A-Lot, a camp for children with cancer. With both husband and wife having experienced close brushes with cancer, the Pattersons had all the motivation they needed to help others.

Upon retirement from their gymnastics coaching positions in 2014, Sarah and David attended their first United Way campaign kickoff event. It had such a profound impact on the Pattersons that they quickly became involved in the organization, taking leadership roles and beginning a path that led to them being named the Alexis de Tocqueville Family of the Year for 2023. The honor will be bestowed May 2 during the Alexis de Tocqueville Society's spring celebration.

The annual award is given to a family that has made significant contributions to improving health, education, or financial stability for West Alabama residents.

"I can’t believe they selected us with all the people we have in our community. We are very honored and blessed to be selected as the Family of the Year," Sarah said.

David said in all the years they had lived in Tuscaloosa, before their retirement, they had never had the time to be involved with United Way because of the grueling schedule they kept with the Alabama gymnastics program.

"It was the first kickoff luncheon that I had ever had the opportunity to go to. I went up at the end of it and met (United Way of West Alabama President and CEO) Jackie (Wuska) and I just said, 'Jackie this was so awesome, if there is every any way I can help you let me know,' " Sarah said.

It was not long before Wuska was on the phone recruiting Sarah to serve on the board of directors. In 2017, Sarah was asked to lead the annual fundraising drive that supports all the United Way's outreach programs.

"Really, because we had retired and I wasn’t really sure what I was going to do, becoming involved in United Way in so many different capacities affected my life. We both have always been community-invested, but the United Way gave me a resource that I could jump into and become a part of. I was part of a team. You know, all the things that we had done for 37 years just moved over in to the community through United Way. I always say that becoming part of United Way was one of the biggest blessings of our retirement career," Sarah said.

Being part of a team has been what the Pattersons have always been about. They have lived in the Tuscaloosa community for 40 years but, though they were in the community, they never felt deeply connected since their work kept them on the move so much. Retirement and the United Way involvement opened doors for the Pattersons to experience Tuscaloosa much more intimately.

"I think United Way has helped us merge ourselves into the community. I’ve lived her over 40 years now and I had never been in Mercedes-Benz or in Hunt Refining. There were so many places I had driven past for years but had never been in there. Being a campaign chairman allowed me to see everything about our community from the inside, that was a spectacular part of being in the United Way program," Sarah said.

Their community involvement is, in many ways, an extension of their coaching lives. Both David and Sarah say they never derived as much pleasure from winning championships as they did from their interactions with their athletes, many of who they remain in contact with today.

"I think our biggest joys from our coaching career are all the people we have stayed in touch with. We know what their kids are doing. We are still recruiting some of their kids to come to school here," David said.

"For us, the best part of our career was not the national championships, it is looking at these young women and what they have done in their lives," Sarah said. "Some of our first recruiting class just turned 60. The things they have done whether it is as lawyers or doctors or teachers or serving in any capacity, I think the championships were fun, but I think David and I both feel like watching all the women we coached go out and have amazing careers that is a huge gift."

Reach Gary Cosby Jr. at gary.cosby@tuscaloosanews.com.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Sarah and David Patterson named Alexis de Tocqueville Family of the Year