Survivor winner says he’ll donate $1M prize money to Veterans

Mike Gabler made history last week as he became the 43rd winner of US reality TV show, Survivor, and the first ever winner to announce he’s donating his prize money to charity.

Gabler, a heart valve specialist from Houston, stunned viewers when he announced in a post-show interview, he would be donating the entire prize money, $1 million, to Veterans in need. Specifically, to support those “recovering from psychiatric problems, PTSD, and curb the suicide epidemic.”

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Gabler says the money will be donated in his father’s name, Robert Gabler, who was a Green Beret.

Although Gabler never spent time in there service, he feels ‘fortunate to come from a military family’, and have the ‘honor to serve [veterans]’ in this way. The winner expressed his desire to donate the money, should he win, throughout the show, however some fans were unconvinced he would follow through on the promise.

Various outlets reported that Gabler’s chosen charity was Veterans In Need. However, a spokesperson for the foundation said Gabler was “generally speaking. It’s not going to us in particular. But he has a good heart and we thank him on behalf of veterans.”

Survivor host, Jess Probst, questioned Gabler on his own financial situation, but he replied that his experience on the show has helped him to realize he is ‘rich at home’ with ‘an amazing family and amazing friends’ and that he could not take the money ‘in good conscience.’

The show, Survivor, gathers a group of strangers in an isolated location where they are forced to provide food, fire, and shelter for themselves. Contestants compete in challenges to prove their physical and mental endurance; at 52 years old Gabler also claims the title of the show’s second oldest winner, ever.