Team sports like baseball can play a key role in the development of kids. That’s why the Detroit Tigers, with the help of the Detroit Tigers Foundation, an affiliate of Ilitch Charities, and USA Baseball, introduced the Fun At Bat program to elementary schools throughout the Detroit Public School Community District.

Fun At Bat is a free curriculum available for schools and school districts nationwide that emphasizes character development, functional movement, active play and fun. The initiative aims to provide children with a fun and active experience while reinforcing principles such as teamwork, honesty and responsibility, and to create an environment that produces both healthier and more well-rounded kids.

Watch as Detroit Tigers players and coaches teach baseball, as well as important life lessons, in the video below.

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The Detroit Red Wings Foundation is committed to creating positive change across Michigan through community involvement and the growth of hockey. Last season, the Red Wings organization proudly represented more than $2 million in combined community support.

Fans and supporters throughout the region helped further the foundation’s cause by attending this year’s Toast of Hockeytown. The annual event was reimagined for its 20^th anniversary around a 1920’s theme, bringing the fun-loving spirit of the Jazz Age to the award-winning Little Caesars Arena.

The main event, which took place atop the covered ice, featured remarks from Detroit Red Wings Executive Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman, and Christopher Ilitch, President & CEO, Ilitch Holdings, Inc. and Governor, Detroit Red Wings.

As the foundation’s signature event, Toast of Hockeytown allows Detroit Red Wings fans, coaches and players — past and present — to mingle while enjoying great music, food from dozens of Detroit-based vendors and craft cocktails. Fans were granted unparalleled access to Little Caesars Arena and Detroit Red Wings personnel, including a three-hour meet-and-greet featuring Yzerman himself. Proceeds from ticket sales support the Detroit Red Wings Foundation.

Travel back in time through this charitable event in the photos below.

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Progress continues at 110 Sproat St., where Olympia Development is redeveloping the nearly 100-year-old former Eddystone Hotel building. The project will bring 92 new residential units and ground-floor retail space to a high-demand area near Little Caesars Arena.

For a peek inside the redevelopment of this historic site, check out the video below.

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Tigers fans rejoice: Opening Day and the 2020 season is just around the corner. In anticipation of the upcoming season, we sent a crew down to Tigertown in Lakeland, Fla.

The players and coaches cut loose to playfully pose for the fun and fan-centered “motion headshots” featured on scoreboards throughout the season. And our video crew captured it all.

Catch the exclusive video here:

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The Detroit Red Wings, in partnership with the NHL and the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA), hosted the Hockey is for Everyone celebration at the award-winning Little Caesars Arena as the Red Wings hosted the Calgary Flames.

The Red Wings invited about 100 guests from several local and national organizations to the game, including:

• Affirmations, a Ferndale, Michigan-based nonprofit that provides a welcoming space for people of all sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, and cultures.
• Representatives from the Detroit Hockey Rink Collaborative, a component of the Detroit Red Wings’ Learn, Play, Score program.
• Members of the adaptive sled hockey team who represented the Detroit Red Wings in the USA Hockey Sled Classic lined up alongside Red Wings players during the singing of the National Anthem.
• Flint Inner-City Youth Hockey Program founder and 2019 Willie O’Ree Community Hero Award-winner Rico Phillips performed the ceremonial puck drop.

Hockey sticks with rainbow-colored “pride tape” used by the Red Wings players during pregame warm-ups are being auctioned at www.DetroitRedWings.com/Auction through Sunday, March 1. Proceeds benefit Affirmations and You Can Play, a national organization dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes.

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The developers of the former United Artist’s building at 150 Bagley have a strong vision for the future of this historic building. Bagley Development Group LLC is redeveloping 150 Bagley St. Residences @ 150 Bagley. The transformation of this historic building will add nearly 150 apartments to the bustling downtown district, 20 percent of which will be designated as affordable, and create about 250 jobs for Detroiters.

Bagley Development Group is dedicated to reviving the 100-year-old, 18-story building while uplifting Detroit and its residents along the way. The group is led by Detroit developer Emmett Moten Jr., who also led the restoration of multiple historic buildings in Detroit.

The building is located in the Grand Circus Park Historic District which was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The Residences @ 150 Bagley will be close to several public transit options and a wealth of entertainment and nightlife, including Cliff Bell’s, Rusted Crow Detroit, the Columbia Street restaurant and retail district, and the historic Fox Theatre.

Learn more about Bagley Development Group’s Detroit-centered approach in the video below.

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Detroit has long been known as “Hockeytown,” but for some of Detroit’s youth, opportunities to play the sport have been beyond reach. Through community partnerships with the Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD), the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan, Detroit Parks & Recreation Department and the Mike Ilitch School of Business at Wayne State University, more than 30,000 youth in the city of Detroit will experience the sport through Learn, Play, Score, a new program that offers students events and engagements over the next two years.

“This is all about empowering the youth in our city,” said Christopher Ilitch, President & CEO, Ilitch Holdings, Inc., and Governor, Detroit Red Wings. “Hockey is more than just a sport. It is about teamwork, dedication, maintaining a healthy body, mind and spirit. We are committed to being a leader in finding innovative ways to connect younger generations to hockey in the community, and the Detroit Red Wings Learn, Play, Score program will provide that very opportunity.”

This program is funded through an initial $1 million investment in partnership with the Detroit Red Wings, the Detroit Red Wings Foundation and the NHL/NHLPA Industry Growth Fund to grow and expand access to the game of hockey across the city of Detroit.

“We are thrilled that the Ilitch Organization and Detroit Red Wings are engaging the city of Detroit to grow and make hockey more welcoming for everyone in the area,” said Kim Davis, NHL Executive Vice President, Social Impact, Growth Initiatives and Legislative Affairs. “It is critically important to give back to cities like Detroit to make sure we are collaborating with them to develop opportunities for those who need it most.”

Ice rinks within the newly formed Detroit Hockey Rink Collaborative (DHRC), including East Side Hockey Ice Arena, Jack Adams Memorial Arena and the outdoor rink at Clark Park, will each offer affordable Learn to Skate and Little Wings Learn to Play programs.

The initiative will initially consist of five innovative and engaging hockey-related platforms.

Unique hockey platforms include:

• Street Hockey in the D with Detroit Parks & Recreation and Detroit Public Schools Community District
  • After School League (Detroit Parks & Recreation)
  • Summer Fun Center Sessions (Detroit Parks & Recreation)
  • School Edition (Physical Education Curriculum Integration -Detroit Public Schools Community District)
• Hockey in the Classroom with Detroit Public Schools Community District
  • Future Goals™ – Hockey Scholar and STEM Day at Little Caesars Arena presented by Chevrolet
• Esports & Hockey with Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan

Ice hockey platforms include:

• Detroit Hockey Rink Collaborative and On-Ice Hockey Pathway Scholarships with Clark Park, East Side Hockey Ice Arena and Jack Adams Memorial Arena
• Open Skate Sessions at Little Caesars Arena

Learn, Play, Score was announced in a press conference on Tuesday, Feb. 18 in the award-winning Little Caesars Arena. Ilitch Holdings President and CEO and Detroit Red Wings Governor, President and CEO Christopher Ilitch gave opening remarks. He was joined by Kim Davis, Executive Vice President, Social Impact, Growth Initiatives & Legislative Affairs for the NHL, and Rob Zepp, Manager of Special Projects for the NHLPA.

Learn more about Detroit Red Wings Learn, Play, Score at www.DetroitRedWings.com/LearnPlayScore.

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When the MotorCity Casino Hotel opened in 1999, it brought energy, excitement and opportunity to Detroit. Now marking its 20-year anniversary of delivering modern luxury to the heart of downtown, it remains the city’s only locally owned and operated casino. Today, more than half of the casino’s employees are Detroit residents.

There have been countless enhancements and improvements over the years. And while interior and exterior facets have changed, many of the original faces have not.  

MotorCity leadership is honored to have more than 400 original employees still part of the team – as committed today as they were the day the doors opened. Additionally, more than half of all current employees, 1569 individuals, have been with the company for five or more years and experienced significant career and growth opportunities. They have been cornerstones of the company’s sustained success.

Starrice Hunt, director of slot operations for MotorCity, is one of the many dedicated original employees that has risen through the ranks. A Detroit native, Hunt said she met a casino executive by chance. She was hired for an entry-level position on the slot floor and has since advanced through six positions over her 20-year career.

“I grew up in the projects,” says Hunt. “Some people would’ve categorized me as a statistic. But with MotorCity Casino affording me the opportunities that it has, I’m not a statistic. I was able to break that barrier and become very successful in my career path.”

Because of the success Hunt has had in her career, she said she’s been able to build a life for her family.

“We are proud that we have hundreds of members of our opening team still employed with us today. They are the foundation for our success, which has allowed us to consistently provide our customers with a uniquely Detroit, hometown experience,” said Bruce Dall, President of MotorCity Casino Hotel. “Two decades here in Detroit, and they have been with us every step of the way. Our colleagues truly are our greatest asset.”  

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Hockey is more than just a sport. The teamwork and physical activity that are ingrained in the game can help provide kids with positive life skills and nurture a love of the sport. That’s why former professional hockey player Jason McCrimmon established Detroit Ice Dreams Hockey Association in 2014 with the goal of maximizing access to the sport for kids in the city of Detroit.

In recognition of this impactful nonprofit organization, the Detroit Red Wings Foundation, through the Learn, Play, Score initiative, has joined Detroit Ice Dreams to expand access to the game of hockey throughout the city.

13-year-old King Moore is just one of the kids who have flourished on the ice in Detroit. Follow Moore on his journey to the award-winning Little Caesars Arena to meet the Detroit Red Wings players who he looks up to.

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