Connie Watt stepped into the limelight with her son JJ Watt’s selection in the NFL. However, JJ hasn’t been the sole reason for her fame since her other two sons, Derek and TJ Watt, also are successful in their respective NFL careers.
Yes, indeed. Connie is the mother who raised three NFL stars. Curious about how she molded her sons for greatness? Here, let’s delve into the life of the amazing mom, including her personal and professional aspects.
Connie Watt, JJ Watt’s Mother, Is In Her 50s
Connie, born Connie Lynn Walczack on October 1, 1969, is 55 years old in 2024. Born and raised in Wisconsin, her roots extend to Milwaukee. Despite the details about her parents are not known, we do know for a fact that her grandmother, Sophie Musial, lived to the age of 101. She passed away on February 9, 2019.
Connie Is Married to John Watt
She is happily married to John D Watt, the father of the Watt brothers. He was born in June of 1962 and is currently 62. In 1987, the couple got married in Wisconsin, and they’ve been leading a blissful married life for 37 years. The husband and wife have three sons, Justin, Derek, and Trent Watt, who don’t need much introduction among football fans.
What Does Connie Do?
Currently, she serves as the JJW Foundation’s Vice President, handling the organization’s day-to-day operations. Before that, worked for building operations companies.
Connie Became a Mom Before She Turned 20
Lynn became a mom even before she turned 20, welcoming her first son, JJ Watt on March 22, 1989. Interestingly, Connie hadn’t even turned 20 at the time she gave birth to her first child.
Then, after almost 3 years, on November 7, 1992, she became a mom for the second time, welcoming Derek Watt. She welcomed her third son, TJ Watt on October 11, 1994.
Many would assume that raising three sons would have been a tough job for the young mom but that just wasn’t the case. The three brothers shared a great bond growing up and they rarely fought with each other. In fact, the siblings were too busy playing sports, steering clear of constant sibling fights.
In 2019, Connie said in an interview that she and her husband were strict parents. They used Excel sheets to keep track of weekly chores for the family, including all their sons. If chores weren’t done right, they had to redo them. She said that this taught the children to be independent and they learned that engaging in activities together increased efficiency and also provided mutual support.
While the mother of three didn’t have to work hard to keep her children disciplined most of the time, there were tough times too. It was hard for her to manage when the kids fell sick or her husband was out for work. She said it became tough for her to put her kids to sleep when her spouse wasn’t there. In those moments, she reached out to a neighbor to comfort one baby while she put another to bed.
T.J. Watt Attended His Brother J.J’s Hockey Practice The Day He Was Born
It’s no wonder that Carol has been a supportive mother to all her kids. However, it might surprise you that the mother of three attended her son’s hockey practice the day she gave birth to her second son, T.J. Watt. J.J. was just 5 years old when his brother was born, however, even at such a young age, he was already passionate about playing hockey. He never missed his hockey practices so Connie didn’t want to miss J.J.’s practices as well.
After the birth of T.J., Connie headed to the hockey rink for J.J.’s hockey practice on the drive home from the hospital.
In the interview, with Sheinelle Jones on Weekend Today, she said, “After T.J. was born, on the drive home from the hospital we headed straight to a hockey rink. J.J. had a practice so we went straight to the hockey rink to be there for that.”
Connie Is Involved in Charity Work As A Vice President of Her Son’s Foundation
Besides being a supportive mother, she’s a humble and kind-hearted individual with a strong commitment to charity work. Serving as the vice president at JJW Foundation, she actively leads various charity programs, leveraging events to raise essential funds for noble causes.
Due to her charity efforts supported by the JJ Watt Foundation, she has gained recognition and received many accolades. On May 23, 2018, she was honored by Houston Texans manager Rick Smith and his wife Tiffany, the co-chair of Provision’s Cornerstone Luncheon, at the first annual Pro-Vision Cornerstone Lunch.
Proud of his mother’s work, J.J. Watt said, “It means a lot to me to have my mom get some of the attention.”
Obviously, I get plenty of press and publicity and those types of things for the things that I do. But it’s important for her to get the credit, because, between her and my dad and my family, the ability to raise me and teach me the right moral values is the reason I am who I am today.
JJ Watt Foundation
JJW foundation was the idea of football defensive end JJ Watt. He wanted to establish the foundation to help children dream big and work hard, which has now become the motto of the foundation. He along with his mother started this foundation back in 2010, when he was still in college.
After around 14 years of establishment, the JJW Foundation has done countless remarkable things. One of the most notable things is, an online fundraiser to aid those affected by Hurricane Harvey. Surprisingly, they were able to gather the huge sum of $41.6 Million, making it the largest crowd-sourced fundraiser in history.
