Detroit Lions Drive Fans to Warm Up Metro Detroit
Fans can donate coats, blankets at Thanksgiving Day game to benefit The Salvation Army
SOUTHFIELD, Mich., - The Detroit Lions are asking fans to bring not just team spirit but a warm winter coat for the team’s 19th annual coat drive at Ford Field during the team’s traditional Thanksgiving Day game. Coats will be donated to The Salvation Army to help keep people in need warm this winter.
Fans attending the Thanksgiving Day game against the Green Bay Packers on Thursday, Nov. 26 can donate a clean, new or gently used coat or blanket. Volunteers will collect coats and blankets at stadium gates from when the doors open at 10:30 a.m. to kick off time at 12:30 p.m.
Coats can also be dropped off at the Achatz Soup and Catering Company or one of the six Achatz Handmade Pie locations located throughout the metro Detroit area. Achatz will collect coats until Thanksgiving Eve when they will be transported to Ford Field. To find a site near you visit www.achatzpies.com or www.achatzsoupfromskratzch.com.
“We are so grateful to the Detroit Lions for making us their coat drive partner. It strengthens the true meaning of Thanksgiving as a time to be thankful for what we have,” said Major John Turner, General Secretary for The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit. “With need up by 60 percent, we know there are too many families out there struggling to afford basics like coats to keep their children and themselves warm throughout the harsh Michigan winter.”
Thousands of coats have been collected since the drive’s inception in 1991 when former Lions equipment manager Dan Jaroshewich, now of Ford Field, started the program. This year’s drive is sponsored by Pepsi in association with The Salvation Army, WWJ-TV and 97.1-FM The Ticket.
“Our fans are extremely generous even in these difficult economic times, and we wouldn’t be able to participate and help out The Salvation Army without their support, said Lions Senior Director of Community Affairs, Tim Pendell. “If you’re coming to Ford Field that day, please bring a coat or blanket to help someone in need. You’ll be cheering on your home team in more ways than you know.”
Founded by William Booth in London, England in 1865, The Salvation Army is a faith-based, non-profit organization dedicated to serving people in need without discrimination. In 2008, The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit was involved in providing more than 3 million meals and 776,973 nights of shelter for the homeless. The Salvation Army uses $.83 of every dollar raised to provide direct services to people in need each and every day of the year. For more information about The Salvation Army, please call 877-SAL-MICH, or visit us at www.salmich.org.