SAGINAW, MI — LaMarr Woodley has provided free food, free school supplies, free sweatshirts, free haircuts and free football camps for Saginaw students.

Now the former Saginaw High star is providing a free opportunity to play school sports.

The Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker is donating $60,000 to the Saginaw Public Schools athletic department to cover the pay-to-participate expenses for athletes in the school district for the 2012-13 school year.

“Through his foundation, LaMarr wanted to make sure that kids get to participate in athletics because it meant so much to him,” Saginaw Public Schools athletic director Jeffrey Goodwine said. “He’s doing it for everyone, Saginaw High and Arthur Hill.

“He’s a true Saginawian. LaMarr’s always helping Saginaw. He does things for Saginaw that people don’t even realize it because he doesn’t promote himself.”

Because of cuts to the athletic budget, the school system instituted pay-to-participate fees for the first time in Saginaw Public Schools history, charging high school students $75 a year to participate in athletics.

“When LaMarr heard about it, it bothered him,” said Malcom Staples, Woodley’s uncle and business advisor. “When LaMarr was playing sports, if his family had to pay $75, they probably could have done it, but it would not have been a simple thing. It would be a hardship for a lot of people, even if they could come up with the money.”

Woodley, a 2003 Saginaw High graduate, is at Pittsburgh Steelers training camp in Latrobe, Pa., preparing for his sixth NFL season. For his career, the former University of Michigan linebacker has 48 sacks and 225 tackles.

“LaMarr started a foundation a few weeks ago, and one of the programs is called ‘Think Big, Dream Big, Live Big,’” Staples said. “The focus is to help the underserved, the underprivileged … to do something positive and have a large impact.

“This does that. This isn’t helping just one kid, it helps the system. The kids are the ones who would lose out to budget cuts. They don’t have anything to do with it, but they become victims of that reality.”

The $60,000 gift would pay for 800 high school student-athletes, not just at Saginaw High but at Arthur Hill and the Saginaw Public Schools junior highs and middle schools.

“Jeff (Goodwin) is a friend of ours … he graduated with my brother Terry (Staples),” Malcolm Staples said. “They started talking about what they could do. LaMarr caught wind of it and immediately wanted to be a part of it. It was really a no-brainer.”

The deadline for athletes to pay the participation fee is before the first athletic contest. For some sports, the fall season begins Wednesday.

“Time was ticking … there wasn’t a lot of time to think about it,” Staples said. “I’m just glad we were able to be a part of it.

“It was a chance to do something positive for a lot of kids and a lot of families in Saginaw.”

Woodley, 27, is expected to return to Saginaw on Wednesday, Aug. 29, for a special back-to-school event for boys entering grades 1 through 8. Woodley will provide backpacks with school supplies during the event, which runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Civitan Recreation Center. Students will also receive food and free shirts at the event, which will also feature special guest speakers.