Pittsburgh Steelers Defensive Lineman Cam Heyward Dedicating His Cleats To Tree Of Life Synagogue Shooting Victims
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- For the rest of the season, Cam Heyward is dedicating his cleats for a great cause.
Heyward announced Tuesday that he will wear customized cleats as a dedication to the victims of the Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting.
".@CamHeyward is dedicating his cleats to the victims of the shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue and the causes that have since been created to honor their memory and help provide support.#MyCauseMyCleats"
"There are a lot of great causes that me and my teammates support, but I wanted this to be special," said Heyward. "It had been over a year and I actually met David and Cecil."
David and Cecil Rosenthal were two of the 11 lives tragically taken at the Tree of Life Synagogue. They are brothers of former Steelers employee Michele Rosenthal.
"Cam is so special and his wife Ali. And what they have done not just with the cleats but throughout the year, I don't know what I would have done without them to get through this," said Michele.
Heyward teamed with local artist Cody Sabol to make the new cleats. Heyward asked him to work on the project at the Steelers Fashion Show earlier this year. The team captain said he wanted to dedicate the shoes because of his love for this city and his ties to the tragic event since he lived in Squirrel Hill.
Heyward's cleats will honor the work of the 10.27 Healing Partnership, a new center in Squirrel Hill led by Maggie Feinstein.
"We've only been open since Oct. 2 and since that time really it's about bringing people in," said Feinstein. "Giving people the opportunity to know that there's somewhere to go and it's okay to feel the way they're feeling."
Heyward tells KDKA he will wear the cleats for Sunday's game against the Arizona Cardinals and for the final home game against the Buffalo Bills.
He hopes he doesn't get them too dirty, because they will eventually be auctioned off for charity
Hundreds of NFL players will showcase causes that are important to them with custom cleats during all Week 14 games for the NFL's My Cause My Cleats campaign.
For more information, visit the Steelers website here.
