When he started his Helping Hands Korea Foundation three years ago, Steelers receiver Hines Ward pointed to his own celebrity status to show biracial Korean children what they could accomplish.

Yesterday, as he greeted eight more biracial children at Pittsburgh International Airport, he had another successful example to which he could point.

Mr. Ward's T-shirt said it all: "Barack for Hope."

"I want to give these kids a sense of hope," Mr. Ward said as the young people, ages 8 to 19, gathered around him. "It doesn't matter what race you are, or even biracial. You can go out and be a positive person in everyday society. Look at my career, or Tiger Woods and our new president. It makes you see that if they can do it, why can't I do it?

"We try to take all the negative prejudice and teasing and turn it into a positive and see how we can better ourselves."

For each of the past three years, Mr. Ward, working with Pearl S. Buck International, which supports inter-racial adoption, has brought eight biracial children from Korea, where they often are discriminated against, to Pittsburgh.

Mr. Ward was born in Korea to a Korean mother and an African-American father. While he grew up in the United States, he has described facing similar experiences.

The children are paired off and stay with four local families for a week of activities that include visits to the Children's Museum, the Carnegie Science Museum, Dave & Busters, and a Steelers home game.

The best part of the trip, however, might be the time the young people spend with the host families.

Steve and Laura Lowe, of Oakmont, became involved with the foundation two years ago. They have four children, including Hannah, a 6-year-old Korean child they adopted when she was a baby.

"We thought it was good to get Hannah involved with this, and we thought it would be good for us, too," Mr. Lowe said after greeting Diana and Lisa, two 19-year-old girls staying with his family.

Lisa, making her first trip to America, lives at home with her mother.

"This will be my first time having a whole lot of family," she said. "So I might learn something."

Kate Kelley and her husband, Ryan Little, of Brighton Heights, became involved when they adopted their son, Ji, 2, from Korea. Yesterday, they met Adrian, 14, and Dong-Min Yi, 12.

"We like kids and we really like the Korean culture," Ms. Kelley said. "And we understand that these kids don't have the same opportunities as Korean kids because they're Ameri-Asians, biracial. So they have a more difficult time.

"It's the time of their lives. They're so excited and giddy. They can't wait to meet Hines because he's like a hero to them. They look to him kind of like a role model."

The parents -- and Mr. Ward -- have kept in touch with the children who have visited in past years. Mr. Ward said he already has seen the program bearing fruit.

"When I go back to Korea, we have a big dinner, and I make sure we have all the kids that we've brought over to America. We tell each other stories," he said. "And I see their faces and the confidence they have in themselves. It's great to see the smiles on their faces, which is what every kid should have."