In today’s episode of This Hits Different, Shelby Cassesse tells the story of Isaac Bernstein, who took used his love for inline hockey to benefit local families in need.
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If you ever wondered what happened to the Grinch after his heart grew three sizes, take a look at Isaac Bernstein.
“A lot of memories are created at holiday times, so being able to be a part of that and be a memory that these people will have is just a very honoring experience,” he says.
The Upper St. Clair junior has spent the last two Christmases dressing up as the Grinch, not just to spread Christmas cheer, but to give back.
All of the money he makes goes to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food bank. This year alone raised 25,000 meals.
“You can just see the joy that parents have and that the kids have,” Isaac says. “The reward comes from making other people happy.”
The idea started around Easter in 2020, where the onset of the pandemic forced most people inside and away from loved ones.
Isaac did visits as the Easter bunny, expanded to the Grinch at Christmas last year, and made it even bigger and better this season with a 3 on 3 inline hockey tournament.
“I thought it would be kind of a great idea to get the Pittsburgh community to come out and play for a great cause,” he says.
The whole thing was a true grassroots effort, advertising through flyers at rinks, recruiting people to join the effort.
24 teams participated, and with concession sales, the event raised an additional 24,000 meals.
“It was a lot of fun to see the entire community from all over — not just Pittsburgh, but Western PA — was a really cool experience,” he says.
Though we may be just getting over Christmas, Isaac is looking ahead to Easter, when he'll do his Easter Bunny visits for the third year.
Through all of his initiatives that started as a way to make families smile during the pandemic, Isaac has raised nearly 100,000 meals for the food bank.
“Just continuing to try to make a positive difference through creative initiatives is kind of my thing,” he says. “It’s rewarding for everyone involved, and that’s my goal.”
You can check out Isaac's fundraising website at platesforpitt.org.