Operation Gratitude.

By Chris Carlin

Upper Deck

In Honor of Veterans Day, Upper Deck Donates to Soldiers Serving in Harm’s Way.

By Chris Carlin

With Veterans Day upon us this Friday, we think it is important to take some time out and think about those who have served their country. Upper Deck was founded in the United States. We make our trading cards in the United States. And we feel it is important to send a small token of our gratitude to those serving to defend the United States. Say what you want about conflicts the U.S. finds themselves involved in, there is no doubt those serving do so honorably and are worthy of our regard.

That’s why Upper Deck donated several thousand packs of collegiate trading cards to Operation Gratitude recently in honor of Veterans Day. Operation Gratitude specializes in sending care packages to troops serving in hostile regions around the world. Small tokens of home can mean so much to those serving, and Upper Deck cards can serve as a nice escape for our troops. This is not the first time Upper Deck has donated to Operation Gratitude, and it certainly will not be the last. We invite our customers and fans to think of Operation Gratitude when thinking of which charitable organizations they will support during the holiday gift giving season. Here is a direct link to donate to this worthwhile cause: https://www.operationgratitude.com/donate/.

“Upper Deck has been working with Operation Gratitude since 2009 donating packs of trading cards that we include in our care packages to troops serving in harms way,” said Carolyn Blashek, founder of Operation Gratitude. “We are thrilled to receive their latest donation of collegiate based trading card packs that will provide our heroes a reminder of home and a connection to their favorite college teams.”

Cards2Kids and Upper Deck at Sports Cards and Collectibles Expo in Toronto

Here is some information on the Cards2Kids and Upper Deck for this coming weekend in Toronto:

Upper Deck Partners with Cards2Kids at Sports Cards & Collectibles Expo in Toronto

by Upper Deck on Monday, November 7, 2011 at 1:19pm

Upper Deck and Chicago-based charity plan to collect and donate NHL cards next weekend in Canada

Carlsbad, CA (November 3, 2011) – Have you ever seen a child open a pack of sports cards? The sense of wonder and excitement they have as they go through the cards and find some of their favorite players is really amazing to behold. Unfortunately not every child has the opportunity to experience this simple pleasure for a variety of reasons and that is where Cards2Kids comes in. Upper Deck recently profiled this emerging 501(c)(3) charity on the Upper Deck Blog where their mission is to get trading cards into the hands of kids to provide a nice distraction for them.

What is really impressive about the organization is their founder John Makowiec who is actually still in high school. While juggling his studies and other school activities, Makowiec runs Cards2Kids setting up donation drives, organizing volunteers, talking with media and most importantly; getting Cards2Kids. He works with a variety of youth organizations to deliver cards to primarily children’s hospitals, working to brighten the days of those youngsters.

As Upper Deck learned more about Cards2Kids and particularly John, we realized this was an organization we wanted to work with. John approached Upper Deck about holding a donation drive at the Sports Cards & Collectibles Expo in Toronto, Ontario from Friday, November 11 through Sunday, November 13 recently and it seemed like a natural fit.

Collectors attending the popular weekend show are encouraged to donate any NHL cards in their collection at the Upper Deck corporate booth. Representatives from Cards2Kids will be on hand to help accept the donations and answer questions about the program. On Sunday, staff will work to package up all the NHL cards received for kids. Once the show is completed, Upper Deck and Cards2Kids will donate packages of all the NHL cards received to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

"I am really excited to have the opportunity to be involved in one of the largest sports card events in the world,” said John Makowiec, founder of Cards2Kids. “This will be Cards2Kids' first opportunity to show the entire sports card community what we are trying to do, which is spread the joy of sports cards to as many kids as possible. In particular, we look forward to helping kids at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. I am really appreciative of Upper Deck and their willingness to help us in our mission to give sports Cards2Kids who are sick or cannot afford them."

“We are honored to have the opportunity to partner with Cards2Kids on their first international donation drive,” said Chris Carlin, sports marketing & social media manager for Upper Deck. “The card collecting community has big hearts so I fully anticipate we will see collectors donating several thousands of cards throughout the weekend to help with this very worthy philanthropic initiative.”

About Upper Deck

Upper Deck is the leading sports and entertainment trading card and collectibles company. For more information on Upper Deck and its products please visit www.upperdeck.com.

About Cards2Kids

Cards2Kids (www.cards2kids.org) is a non-profit charity started by John Makowiec, a teenager, who wanted to make a difference in the world. Cards2Kids specializes in collecting new and used sports cards and through its partnerships with hospitals, as well as Boys & Girls clubs, packages and delivers cards to sick and less fortunate children. Cards2Kids encourages participation by everyone by accepting card donations, soliciting partnership opportunities, and seeking volunteers. Additional information on how you can get involved is available at www.cards2kids.org.