The Steelers offense may be struggling right now, but that isn’t stopping JuJu Smith-Schuster from making a positive impact on the Pittsburgh community.
According to an eyewitness account, Smith-Schuster paid for a local woman’s full cart of groceries at a Giant Eagle on the South Side on Tuesday night. At around 8:15 p.m., Shayisha Woods, 39, of West Pittsburgh, realized she didn’t have her debit card when she went to pay for her items, which were already bagged and loaded into her cart.
As she searched frantically for the card — sending her friend outside to go check their car — Smith-Schuster, wearing a purple sweatshirt with its hood up that made him hardly recognizable, quietly stepped ahead and paid for the groceries ... no questions asked.
“He basically took over and just put his debit card in the machine,” Woods told the Post-Gazette. “He told us, ‘Don’t worry about it. I’m paying for everything.’ I kept asking him who he was and he was just smiling.”
Woods, a single mother with a 20-year-old son and grandson on the way, was in total shock while unbeknownst to the fact that it was a star Steelers receiver who covered the $200 in groceries. After a Giant Eagle associate informed Woods it was indeed Smith-Schuster, she started crying and repeatedly thanked him for the random act of kindness.
Smith-Schuster posed for a quick selfie at Woods’ request before leaving the store alone with his own groceries in hand.
“It was so touching,” said Woods. “Before I even knew it was JuJu, it meant a lot because no one has ever done anything like that for me before. People don't just do this in the world today. He is such a humble guy. I wish I had his number because I would offer him a plate. I'm over here cooking a real good meal because of him.”
On Wednesday afternoon, Smith-Schuster’s goodwill efforts continued as four students were awarded scholarships through the JuJu Foundation, a non-profit organization established by the Steelers wide receiver in 2019.
This story has been updated.
First Published: October 6, 2021, 1:06 p.m.
