Jerome Bettis plays Santa to Pittsburgh nonprofit after theft of gifts

The Grinch tried to steal Christmas from a nonprofit collecting donations for children in need, but former Pittsburgh Steelers star Jerome Bettis deftly stepped in to help them spread holiday cheer.

Family Resources, a Pittsburgh-based organization that fights child abuse, was accepting donations for local children in need during the holiday season. Jerome Bettis and his The Bus Stops Here Foundation had teamed up with them, donating hats, gloves, coats and toys, said Beth Vietmeier, executive director of The Bus Stops Here Foundation.

Last week, the foundation learned that all the donations Family Resources collected had been stolen from their facility.

“That broke our hearts,” Vietmeier said. “We decided to do a quick call to action and put out some social media posts asking individuals to participate.”

“Pittsburgh, we can’t let the Grinch steal Christmas,” Bettis wrote on his foundation’s Facebook page.

Bettis also donated two autographed Steelers jerseys to support the cause.

Within three days, they raised more than $30,000 from individuals in the community, Vietmeier said. Plus, current Steelers Stephon Tuitt and Tyson Alualu made personal contributions. Several corporations and foundations — including former Steeler Charlie Batch’s Best of the Batch Foundation — also made donations. North Face donated hats, gloves and coats.

“With what we received, we were able to go to Wal-Mart and repurchase all the gifts — plus the kids were able to submit wish lists,” Vietmeier said, adding that Wal-Mart offered them a discount to replace the stolen donations.

The Bus Stops Here Foundation dropped off donations to Family Resources Sunday. They collected enough donations to help more than 150 kids and families this Christmas, Vietmeier said.

“Jerome just kept saying, ‘We want to bless as many families as we can this holiday season.’ I think he was truly able to do that,” Vietmeier said.

But it was a community effort, she added.

“It’s truly amazing to see out of something bad, the beauty that comes next,” she said. “People were so generous this holiday season, and I know that it’s been a hard year for so many.”

Donations are being accepted through the Family Resources website.