Texas Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels and his wife, Heidi, recently announced plans to donate their $9.2M mansion in Missouri to a charity that caters to children with special needs and chronic illnesses.
According to reports, the 32,000-square-foot home, which features more than 100 acres of land in southwest Missouri, will be donated to the nonprofit organization, Camp Barnabas, and will be used as a space for children in the group as well as their siblings.
Hamels released the following statement regarding the donation.
“There are tons of amazing charities in Southwest Missouri. Out of all of these, Barnabas really pulled on our heartstrings,” Cole Hamels said in a statement.
“Seeing the faces, hearing the laughter, reading the stories of the kids they serve; there is truly nothing like it. Barnabas makes dreams come true, and we felt called to help them in a big way.”
Krystal Simon, the chief development officer for Camp Barnabas, says the generous donation will change thousands of lives for years to come.
“This is so much more than a beautiful property,” said Krystal Simon, chief development officer for Camp Barnabas. “This incredible gift allows us to further our ministry and truly change thousands of lives for years to come.”
An attorney for the couple told the Springfield News-Leader that Hamels and his wife never actually moved into their sprawling mansion in southwest Missouri and instead chose to live in Texas, where Hamels has played since 2015.