Ilitch
Companies Celebrate the Community with Debut of Float in the 83rd
America's Thanksgiving Parade
Rendering
courtesy of The Parade Company
DETROIT
– – Ilitch Holdings, Inc., today said it
has made a three-year commitment to sponsor a float in America’s
Thanksgiving Day Parade, a holiday tradition in Detroit for more
than 80 years.
“For
50 years we have been delivering fun to families and fans, whether
it’s with Little Caesars Pizza, sports or entertainment.
Now we will be a part of America’s Thanksgiving Parade®,
an event that is synonymous with family fun and is a community
tradition,” said Christopher Ilitch, president and CEO of
Ilitch Holdings. “This is a great opportunity for the Ilitch
companies to support an iconic event and help ensure that it can
continue for years to come. At the same time we get to celebrate
our community.”
The float,
called “Celebrate Detroit,” will join the parade line-up
to honor metro Detroit as a great sports and entertainment town
and to celebrate the region’s loyal sports fans and patrons.
It will feature many of Detroit’s landmark buildings including
the Fox Theatre, Comerica Park and Hockeytown Café, and
be adorned with cartoon likenesses of entertainers, sports figures
and fans.
“With
a theme of ‘Together we Shine’ we thought it was the
ideal time to become a part of this event,” said Ilitch.
“The parade, like Little Caesars, our sports teams and our
entertainment organizations, brings people together and at the
same time does so much for the community in terms of lifting our
spirits and showcasing much of what is positive about our region
to visitors and viewers from around the entire nation.”
“We are very proud and excited to add the Ilitch companies,
which include a quality roster of organizations to The Parade.
This is a fantastic partnership that benefits America’s
Thanksgiving Parade and the metro Detroit community,” said
Tony Michaels, president and CEO of The Parade Company. “The
Parade Company is very thankful for the support from the Ilitch
companies.”
America’s
Thanksgiving Parade® starts at 9:20 a.m., on Thursday, November
26, 2009, at Woodward Avenue and Mack. It will travel south on
Woodward through Foxtown and Campus Martius, ending at Congress.
About
Ilitch Holdings, Inc.
Ilitch Holdings, Inc. provides professional services to the companies
owned by Michael and/or Marian Ilitch. The Ilitch companies in
the food, sports and entertainment industries include: Little
Caesars Pizza, Blue Line Foodservice Distribution, the Detroit
Red Wings, Olympia Entertainment, Olympia Development, Little
Caesars Pizza Kits Fundraising Program, Champion Foods and Uptown
Entertainment. Michael Ilitch is the sole owner of the Detroit
Tigers. Marian Ilitch is the sole owner of MotorCity Casino Hotel.
About
the Parade Company
Founded in 1984, The Parade Company is a not-for-profit organization
governed by the Michigan Thanksgiving Parade Foundation, whose
board of directors is comprised of key civic and corporate leaders
in the greater Detroit region. The Parade Company is celebrating
83 years of Parade tradition in Detroit. The mission is to fund,
create and execute the best family events in metro Detroit. The
Parade Company staff, the board of directors and thousands of
parade volunteers work year-round to bring a wide variety of magnificent
events to the City of Detroit, each year, including the Target
Fireworks, River Days and America's Thanksgiving Parade®.
