But Van Andel Arena also played host to a few more special guests that evening.
Having reached out to the Veteran Tickets Foundation, the holidays were a perfect time for the Van Andel Arena staff to donate a night of fun and relaxation to veterans in the West Michigan area. Forty free tickets were designated to the organization and veterans from the Army, Air Force and Navy were all recipients of admission to the family-friendly show.
With the slogan “Give Something To Those Who Gave,” The Veteran Tickets Foundation is a non-profit, non-governmental organization aimed at expressing gratitude to veterans by working with venues and shows across the country to provide free tickets to great events.
Per the Veteran Tickets Foundation website, “When our Military and Veterans go to an event for free, we want them to feel a collective “thank you” from all of us to all of them.”
The foundation has been able to provide free tickets to NCAA Div. I basketball games, NFL games, Disney On Ice, comedy shows and concerts among many others. To date, the foundation has given out 509,382 tickets in all 50 states and Washington DC. More information can be found at www.vettix.org.
Van Andel Arena along with the Gaither Christmas Homecoming Tour were proud to offer local veterans a joyous evening.
But this wasn't the first time our staff helped make contributions to our heroes in service. Last summer, $5 from tickets sold to the July Trace Adkins performance at DeVos Performance Hall was pledged to The Wounded Warriors Project.
The Wounded Warriors Project raises awareness and enlists the public's aid for the needs of injured service members.
In the end, these initiatives are the least we could do for their service. We hope to work with the Veteran Tickets Foundation and Wounded Warriors Project again whenever possible.
