{"id":115710,"date":"2025-11-02T14:12:58","date_gmt":"2025-11-02T14:12:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=115710"},"modified":"2025-11-02T14:12:58","modified_gmt":"2025-11-02T14:12:58","slug":"obama-thanks-steelers-star-for-joining-fight-against-hunger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=115710","title":{"rendered":"Obama Thanks Steelers Star for Joining Fight Against Hunger"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"295\" data-end=\"332\"><strong data-start=\"295\" data-end=\"332\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy-img\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn-wp.thesportsrush.com\/2024\/10\/0e964d58-untitled-design-2024-10-07t083717.874.jpg?format=auto&amp;w=3840&amp;q=75\" alt=\"\" width=\"360\" height=\"240\" \/><\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"295\" data-end=\"332\">\n<p data-start=\"334\" data-end=\"522\">Former President\u00a0<strong data-start=\"351\" data-end=\"367\">Barack Obama<\/strong>\u00a0has publicly thanked\u00a0<strong data-start=\"389\" data-end=\"433\">Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt<\/strong>\u00a0after the NFL superstar joined his nationwide campaign to fight hunger across America.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"524\" data-end=\"892\">Shortly after Obama\u2019s viral post on X declaring that\u00a0<em data-start=\"577\" data-end=\"693\">\u201cmore than 47 million Americans \u2014 including one in five children \u2014 don\u2019t have reliable access to nutritious food,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Watt pledged a generous<\/p>\n<p><strong data-start=\"718\" data-end=\"739\">$120,000 donation<\/strong>\u00a0to\u00a0<strong data-start=\"743\" data-end=\"785\">Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong data-start=\"790\" data-end=\"814\">Feeding Pennsylvania<\/strong>, aiming to provide meals for families struggling through the winter months.<\/p>\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1984331985846669797&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Ffanhub.feji.io%2Fblog%2Fobama-thanks-steelers-star-for-joining-fight-against-hunger&amp;sessionId=556d9bab9a3507bcd9aca162de2ffa610d18e98f&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" sandbox=\"\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"1984331985846669797\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p data-start=\"894\" data-end=\"1178\">The gesture resonated deeply across the Steel City, where Watt remains one of the most beloved figures in franchise history. Through eight games this season, he has recorded<\/p>\n<p><strong data-start=\"1068\" data-end=\"1115\">38 tackles, 9.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles<\/strong>, once again leading one of the NFL\u2019s most dominant defenses.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1180\" data-end=\"1221\">Speaking about his decision, Watt said:<\/p>\n<blockquote data-start=\"1222\" data-end=\"1454\">\n<p data-start=\"1224\" data-end=\"1454\"><em data-start=\"1224\" data-end=\"1452\">\u201cPittsburgh has given me everything \u2014 the cheers, the pride, and the purpose. Giving back isn\u2019t an act of charity; it\u2019s a responsibility. No family in this city should ever have to wonder where their next meal will come from.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"1456\" data-end=\"1508\">Obama reposted the story with a heartfelt message:<\/p>\n<blockquote data-start=\"1509\" data-end=\"1610\">\n<p data-start=\"1511\" data-end=\"1610\"><em data-start=\"1511\" data-end=\"1608\">\u201cT.J. shows us what true leadership looks like \u2014 strength on the field, and compassion off it.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"1612\" data-end=\"1919\">According to sources close to the team, Obama also sent Watt a<\/p>\n<p><strong data-start=\"1675\" data-end=\"1692\">personal gift<\/strong>\u00a0to thank him for his contribution \u2014 believed to be a\u00a0<strong data-start=\"1746\" data-end=\"1839\">framed presidential football inscribed with the words \u2018Play with power, lead with heart.\u2019<\/strong>\u00a0The gesture instantly went viral, making<\/p>\n<p><strong data-start=\"1881\" data-end=\"1917\">Steelers fans prouder than ever.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1921\" data-end=\"2117\">As the Steelers prepare for their Week 9 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts, Watt\u2019s leadership continues to define the identity of Pittsburgh \u2014 a city built on grit, loyalty, and heart.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former President\u00a0Barack Obama\u00a0has publicly thanked\u00a0Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt\u00a0after the NFL superstar joined his nationwide campaign to fight hunger across America. Shortly after Obama\u2019s viral post on&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":115711,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115710","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Obama Thanks Steelers Star for Joining Fight Against Hunger - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=115710\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Obama Thanks Steelers Star for Joining Fight Against Hunger - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Former President\u00a0Barack Obama\u00a0has publicly thanked\u00a0Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. 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