The Salvation Army’s Bed & Bread Club Radiothon Marathon Event Raises $1,364,122
Metro Detroiters Support the “Club That’s Here for Good” During The Salvation Army’s Bed & Bread Club Radiothon Marathon Event Raises $1,364,122
The Salvation Army’s 26th annual Bed & Bread Club Radiothon raised $1,364,122 to fight hunger and homelessness during today’s 16-hour event that aired live from Oakland Mall in Troy on News/Talk 760 WJR.
For the third year in a row, The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit partnered with the Great Voice of the Great Lakes and Paul W. Smith, Frank Beckmann, Mitch Albom and other on-air personalities to host the marathon broadcast – the primary source of financial support for the Bed & Bread Program.
Bed & Bread Club Chairman and retired Detroit radio Hall of Famer Dick Purtan also returned to the airwaves to guest co-host the Radiothon, joined throughout the day by Big Al Muskavito of “Purtan’s People.”
Every dollar raised during the Radiothon will go directly to the Bed & Bread program, which serves more than 5,000 meals each day, more than 1.8 million meals every year, to men, women and children who would otherwise go without. The program also provides nearly 400 homeless individuals with shelter each night, nearly 160,000 nights annually.
Everyone who supported the Radiothon was eligible to win a two-year lease of a 2013 Ford Fusion SE with leather interior from The Suburban Collection, compliments of Suburban Ford of Sterling Heights and Suburban Ford of Waterford.
The largest donation hour of the 2013 event raised $163,832 in the 8 p.m. hour, thanks to a $25,000 match by Dick and Gail Purtan.
Contributing to the $1,364,122 final tote were a number of donations from corporate sponsors throughout the day, including:
· A $67,000 matching gift from Garden Fresh Gourmet, of Ferndale, sponsors of the Bed & Bread tote board at Oakland Mall. In addition, Garden Fresh COO and general counsel, and co-chair of the Bed & Bread Committee John Latella and his wife, Shelly, made a $1,000 personal donation. The company supports the Bed & Bread program year-round, including hosting the annual Shield on the Field celebrity softball game, the Radiothon’s precursor event.
· $50,000 from the Ford Motor Company Fund, of which $25,000 was earmarked for a second annual Bed & Bread Tweetathon. For every tweet containing the hashtag #BedandBread throughout the day, Ford Motor Company Fund donated $3 to the Radiothon. The social media event hit its goal of 8,333 tweets, raising enough money alone to help feed 208 people for an entire year. Overall the Tweetathon generated more than 10,453 tweets by the end of the Radiothon.
· Several significant presentations were made throughout the 16-hour Radiothon including: $45,000 from Bank of America; $43,230 from The Salvation Army Metropolitan Detroit Advisory Board; $25,000 Ally Financial; $25,000 from Michigan Financial Companies; $25,000 from NAI Farbman, The Farbman Group and Hennessey Capital, a division of Hitachi Capital American Corp.; $25,000 from Edsel and Cynthia Ford; $10,000 from ITC Holdings Corp.; $10,000 from Moran Chevrolet; $10,000 from Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc.; $5,000 from Gannett and $5,000 from Pat Milliken Ford.
Individual supporters who donated $240 or more to the Radiothon earned membership in the Bed & Bread Club and will receive a specially packaged box of Michigan-made Sander’s chocolates as a thank you for joining the “Club that’s Here for Good.”
“We are overwhelmed with the tremendous generosity that residents and corporations across metro Detroit have demonstrated for our Bed & Bread program,” said Major Mark Anderson, general secretary and metro Detroit area commander for The Salvation Army Eastern Michigan Division. “On behalf of the thousands of men, women and children we serve every day, we extend our sincerest gratitude to everyone who made our 26th Radiothon a success. We thank WJR for making the 16 hour broadcast possible, along with Paul W., Frank, Mitch, Dick and all the guests who encouraged listeners to open their hearts and wallets in support of this vital program. ”
A variety of local and national celebrities and politicians participated in the broadcast, including Tim Allen, Keith Alberstadt, Mayor Dave Bing, Dave Brandon, Jim Brandstatter, Bruce Campbell, Dave Coulier, Dan Dickerson, Keith Famie, Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel, Kathleen Madigan, Florine Mark, Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon, Ted Nugent, Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, Thom Sharp, Dax Shepard, Governor Rick Snyder, Senator Debbie Stabenow, Mark Ridley and Mitch Ryder.
The broadcast featured hourly incentives generously donated by a host of local businesses including: Broadway in Detroit, Buddy’s Pizza, Chrysler Group’s SRT, the Detroit Free Press’ BJ Hammerstein, the Detroit News’ Henry Payne and Nolan Finley, Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Regional Chamber, ECS Partnership- McDonald’s, Eskimo Jack’s, Flame Heating and Cooling, HOUR Media, Infinity & Ovation Yacht Charters, Jax Kar Wash, Lelli’s, Leon & Lulu, Mark Ridley’s Comedy Castle, The Parade Company, Roma Café and Tullymore Golf Resort.
Wright & Filippis was honored during the broadcast with The Salvation Army’s Corporate Giving Award, presented annually to a company that is dedicated to the fight against hunger and homelessness through support of the Bed & Bread Club Radiothon.
“WJR thanks our listeners for being responsive to The Salvation Army’s appeals to fund its Bed & Bread program,” said News/Talk 760 WJR General Manager Tom O’Brien. “We’re proud that so many WJR listeners have joined the fight against poverty to ensure The Salvation Army can continue to provide food and shelter to so many in our hometown.”
Since its launch in 1988, the Radiothon has raised more than $28,258,020 in an effort to provide food and shelter to those who otherwise would go without.
The Bed & Bread program provides food, shelter and access to critical social services for people in metro Detroit’s most depressed areas 365 days of the year. The Bed & Bread trucks, essentially mobile soup kitchens, serve Detroiters who would otherwise go without at designated Bed & Bread stops.