Former Pittsburgh Steeler Alan Faneca reflects on work in the community, Glimmer of Hope foundation

CANTON, Ohio — Alan Faneca’s six-year wait to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, ended in early August in Canton, Ohio when he was one of five Steelers inducted into the prestigious hall.

Faneca was the foundation of the Steelers offensive line for ten seasons, and when he got the famous knock on the door from Dave Baker, it was a moment he’ll never forget. Faneca told Channel 11, “It was very different than being in the hotel and having my close family around me.  To have expanded family that I didn’t even know was here, to turn around and see that they drove in and sunk in the back door; to be able to share that moment with them was very special.”

While Faneca was the foundation for the Steelers on the field, off the field his success was the foundation for him to become something greater. His work in the Pittsburgh community started nearly two decades ago and shows no signs of slowing down.

Faneca is heavily involved in the Glimmer of Hope Foundation, which focuses on breast cancer awareness for women under 40. Diane Napper of the Glimmer of Hope Foundation told Channel 11, “I would tell Alan you didn’t come here to win a Super Bowl, you came here to help me get breast cancer under control.”

With breast cancer running in his family, it was a cause very close to Faneca’s heart.  And his hard work has paid off, including the opening of the Glimmer of Hope Metastatic Breast Cancer Center last October.

“Some of the things the Glimmer of Hope has been able to do...” Faneca said, “You see the women that it’s helped, you see the smiles on their faces or the relief in their voices, and you see what you’re doing, it brings it to reality right?”

Faneca has never missed a Glimmer of Hope Foundation event in nearly two decades. Napper said, “We’re in year 19 and they’ve come back every single year. I think any time an athlete comes back after they’ve moved on, it says a lot about their character.”

The Glimmer of Hope’s “Bid For Hope” event will be held this coming October, and Faneca will be there.

Steelers legend Jerome Bettis reacts to former teammate Alan Faneca's induction to Hall of Fame

But his work doesn’t stop there. Faneca is also a big advocate for women’s mental health. His experience with post-partum depression within his family led him to teaming up with Steven D’Achille of the Alexis Joy Foundation. D’Achille lost his wife to post-partum depression.

D’Achille told Channel 11, “For Alan it was his story, it struck a chord with me when I heard it from him and Julie for the first time. He’s been a great voice to help people understand that mental health is not a women’s health issue, that it’s a family issue.”

D’Achille went on to praise Faneca’s work with the foundation, saying, “For him to be open and share that story and his wife to share her struggle, which is difficult with the stigma and the shame, and you’re already in the spotlight, it takes bravery and courage. To have a legend step up and say, this is our truth, this is our reality, it helps our case tremendously.”

With the gold jacket Faneca now wears proudly, he intends to make it count for more than just membership in Pro Football’s hall of the immortals.

“They’re not just wearing it to wear it around,” said Faneca. “They’re probably mostly wearing it to go to charity functions and helping out and doing great things with it, and that’s what I look forward to doing.””

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