Former Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch hosted his 8th Annual In the Pocket on Monday night at Latitude 40 in Robinson Township.
The event, which benefits the Best of the Batch Foundation, brought some of his former teammates together to get competitive in games like pool, ping pong and bowling, while at the same time raising money for the Best of the Batch Foundation.
"When we started this event eight years ago we wanted to do something fun for a good cause," said Batch. "To see it grow to the point where it is and still be able to sustain itself is special. A lot of guys have a lot of fun, but at the same time believe in what we are doing at the Batch Foundation. It's humbling whenever you still have people who want to support you. Now that I am on the other side of the fence as a former player, to still have people believe in us as we do our part to help the literacy levels around the country."
In the Pocket helps to fund the Foundation's Reading and Computer Literacy Program, a program that serves over 3,000 kids in the Steel Valley area and five counties each year. Proceeds from the event have helped build the foundation's computer lab, including the addition of the cyber hub which houses all of the computer equipment used for the tutoring program. The foundation also announced their plans for future expansion of their headquarters to a state-of-the-art educational facility, allowing for them to help even more young people and expand their alternative education program.
"It's phenomenal," said Batch. "We have been talking about it for a number of years and now to see everything come to light and we are able to see a visual of what the ideas were, it's special. It really is. It's a lot of hard work and blessings."
