Kelsey Ropp, a tenth grade student at Freeland High School, and her soccer teammates will be “Kick’n to Help Kids” on Wednesday, May 9^th.

Purchase a $5 ticket at the gate to the soccer field of Freeland High School for either the 5pm junior varsity game or the 7pm varsity game against John Glenn. Admission fees, plus proceeds from the sale of pinwheels, commemorative t-shirts, baked goods, 50/50 tickets and concessions will benefit CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region. The CAN Council is at the forefront of addressing child abuse & neglect through prevention, intervention and advocacy programs.

Ropp, a Varsity soccer player and avid volunteer with Freeland Scholars and Chippewa Nature Center, spearheaded the charity game and is hoping the stands are filled with CAN supporters and soccer enthusiasts alike on May 9^th!

Game sponsors include Burt Watson, CAN Council staff, Eudici’s Pizza, Freeland Athletic Association, Freeland Fast Lube, Freeland Pharmacy, Freeland State Bank, Hundred Acre Woods, MidMichigan Health, Mid-State Liquidators, Pat’s Food Center, Riverside Family Restaurant, Ruppert Automotive Repair, Saginaw Athletic Club, State Farm, The Log Cabin Bar & Grill, Tiffany’s, and Zion Lutheran Church.

To get more information about the event, call Bonnie Skornia at (989) 752-7226.

CONTACT:
Bonnie Skornia, Children’s Advocacy Center Program Director
1311 N. Michigan Avenue
Saginaw, MI 48602(989) 752-7226 office
bskornia@cancouncil.org

FREELAND GIRLS SOCCER TEAMS ARE KICK’N TO HELP KIDS

Varsity Soccer Player Orchestrates Game Benefitting
CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region

FREELAND, MI - May 1, 2012: Kelsey Ropp, a tenth grade student at Freeland High School, and her soccer teammates will be “Kick’n to Help Kids” on Wednesday, May 9^th. Admission fees to the evening’s soccer games, plus proceeds from sideline sales will benefit CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region. $5 tickets will be available at the gate to the Freeland High School soccer field for either the 5pm junior varsity game or the 7pm varsity game, both against John Glenn.

Ropp, a Varsity soccer player and avid volunteer with Freeland Scholars and Chippewa Nature Center, spearheaded the charity game. Since last year, Ropp has wanted to play a game for charity, much like Freeland football players do yearly during the Clash For a Cure. Ropp and her teammates identified multiple local & national charities before ultimately selecting CAN Council to benefit from the game. Ropp says the teams will honor the CAN Council each year during the “Kick’n to Help Kids” charity game.

Suzanne Greenberg, President/CEO of CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region says, “This young lady’s leadership and the commitment of the soccer teams will impact the lives of many vulnerable children. It’s a great example of what each of us can do to make a difference in our own way, in our own community.”

Game sponsors include Burt Watson, CAN Council staff, Eudici’s Pizza, Freeland Athletic Association, Freeland Fast Lube, Freeland Pharmacy, Freeland State Bank, Hundred Acre Woods, MidMichigan Health, Mid-State Liquidators, Pat’s Food Center, Riverside Family Restaurant, Ruppert Automotive Repair, Saginaw Athletic Club, State Farm, The Log Cabin Bar & Grill, Tiffany’s, and Zion Lutheran Church.

The CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region is at the forefront of addressing the issues surrounding child abuse & neglect through its nationally-accredited and award-winning prevention, intervention and advocacy programs. To learn more about the event or the CAN Council, call Bonnie Skornia at (989) 752-7226.

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About the CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region
The CAN Council is a local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the Great Lakes Bay Region dedicated to the prevention of child abuse and neglect through education, awareness, intervention and advocacy. It is the only nonprofit organization in the Great Lakes Bay Region devoted to this cause. Founded in 1979, the CAN Council has consistently grown over the past 32 years to meet the needs of the community’s children and families. For more information, visit CANcouncil.org or call (989) 752-7226.

Each year for the past four years, Gary Shepard has decorated with thousands of lights his home, yard, barn and trees and synchronized them to music.

The show runs daily from December 1st through January 1st.  Shows start at 5:30 pm and the last show starts at 10:00 pm.  Shows start every 20 minutes and last about 16 minutes for the first part of the evening.  The 9:00 pm and after show is about 15 minutes and includes previous year’s songs.

For complete information, go to www.freelandlights.com

Tune your car’s radio to 93.9 FM to enjoy the show from your warm car.

This year’s songs for the first part of the evening are as follows: (5:30 - 9:00pm)

Peter Hofmann & Deborah Sasson - Sleigh Ride

Burl Ives - Rudolph the Red  Nosed Reindeer

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra - Hooked on Can Can

Trans Siberian Orchestra - Wizards in Winter

This year’s songs for the rest of the evening are as follows:           (9:00 - 10:20pm)

Same list as above with additional songs:

Trans Siberian Orchestra - Queen of The Winter Night

Trans Siberian Orchestra - Christmas Eve Sarajevo

The Christmas Singers - God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen

Several visitors in the past couple of years have asked if he accepted donations for the light show.  2011 will be the fourth year that donations will be collected.  Donations will be given to a local organization that helps children.

This year the organization is The CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region.   The total collected and presented to the CAN Council last year was $6,418.61.  Thanks Again!

Thank you for your generosity.  Please donate if you can, your help is greatly appreciated, and no amount is too small!  If you would prefer to write a check, please make the check out to: CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region.

Thank you for helping MMR continue to serve those in need.

Barnes & Noble stores across the country invite customers to give the gift of reading to children in need during its annual Holiday Book Drive, taking place from November 1, 2011 to January 1, 2012. The Barnes & Noble Holiday Book Drive provides an opportunity for customers to donate books through locally designated non-profit organizations.

Holiday Book Drive recipients throughout the country include schools, libraries, literacy organizations, family social service agencies and homeless centers. This year, the Saginaw Barnes & Noble, located at 3311 Tittabawassee will be collecting books for CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region.

“The Holiday Book Drive is one of our most popular community partnerships,” says Sarah DiFrancesco, director of community relations for Barnes & Noble. “Our booksellers and customers get to share the pure joy of giving a book to a child in need. And because each Barnes & Noble store chooses its local non-profit beneficiary, the donations are very personal.”

The CAN Council is a local 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization in Saginaw dedicated to the prevention of child abuse and neglect through education, awareness, intervention and advocacy. It is the only nonprofit organization in Saginaw County devoted to this cause. In Saginaw alone 300 children are in foster care. The organization’s CASA program advocates for 125-150 of these children. All books collected will be presented to the children at their annual Christmas party.

To find out how to participate in the Holiday Book Drive, contact the Saginaw Barnes & Noble Community Relations Manager, Virginia Heighes at 989-790-9386.

Come and see over 40 beautiful wreaths, trees and swags to be raffled at 7pm.  Enjoy hors d’ouvres and a cash bar while you are admiring the beautiful wreaths.  Admission is $20 and raffle tickets are 6 for $5 or $1 each.  A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the CAN Council Great Lakes Bay Region.

For the third year in a row, Art Van Furniture is continuing its tradition of giving away $1 million to 50 Michigan-based charities that focus on children, health, and human services programs.

We received an $11,000 grant from Art Van Furniture last year. With your help, now we have a chance to receive up to $25,000 more!!! They are opening up this round to the past three years of recipients and will be awarding $10,000, $15,000 and $25,000 grants to the three highest vote getters.

Every person is able to vote for us once a day. The leader board will be active on the website next week, so you will be able to track our voting progress.

Remember, voting ends October 1th, 2011. The website (artvancharitychallenge.com) will be up all year, though, to continue to support us and collect donations on our behalf.

Voting for the social media challenge is open now! Remember to use your email, Facebook, and Twitter to drive other people to vote at http://artvancharitychallenge.com !

The WIOG Lizard Fair is at Dow Diamond on August 7, 2011.   A portion of all ticket sales will be donated to the area Children Advocacy Centers - CAN Council of Saginaw County, Nathan Weidner CAC of Bay City and Safe & Sound of Midland.  The  groups scheduled to appear at this year’s WIOG Lizard Fair are Runner Runner, Big Time Rush, Flo Rida and Jay Sean.  The gates open at 4 pm.

The CAN Council has “special” $20 tickets available.  The proceeds of these “special” tickets go to the CAN Council.  Please call us at (989) 752-7226, to purchase your WIOG Lizard Fair ticket and reserve your place in the Northern Lights Pavilion of the Great Lakes Loons’ stadium.

The Roof Sit is an annual month-long event held in collaboration with WIOG, McDonald’s, and the area’s Children Advocacy Centers - CAN Council of Saginaw, Nathan Weidner CAC of Bay City and Safe and Sound of Midland.

This event helps raise both awareness of child abuse prevention and funds to support the local CACs.  Starting June 23rd and continuing through July 21st, area McDonald’s restaurants will collect money to support the local Children Advocacy Centers.

On July 21st, WIOG DJ, Demas, will be on the roof at the Wilder Road, Bay City McDonald’s location.  There will also be FREE kids activities from 11am - 3pm at the Wilder Road McDonald’s.  The activities will include, face painting, inflatables and appearances by Mickey & Minnie Mouse, Scooby Doo & more.

Come out and support The CAN Council, Nathan Weidner Children’s Advocacy Center and Safe & Sound!

The Children’s Advocacy Center’s Annual Roof Sit kicks off June 23, 2011.  Roof Sit is a month long event, in collaboration with WIOG, McDonald’s, and the area’s Children Advocacy Centers - CAN Council of Saginaw, Nathan Weidner CAC of Bay City and Safe and Sound of Midland.  This event helps raise both awareness of child abuse prevention and funds to support the local CACs.  WIOG will broadcast live from area McDonald’s on June 23, 2011 to kick off the month long event.  Live Remote Kickoffs Include:  7am - 9am  McDonald’s, Wilder Road, Bay City - - 11am - 1pm McDonald’s, Eastman Road, Midland  - -5pm - 7pm  McDonald’s, State Street, Saginaw. 

Come out and support the CAN Council at any of these area McDonald’s restaurants.