Plymouth-Canton Veterans - Local Businesses Partner With Salvation Army To Help Families For Christmas

Our Plymouth-Canton Vietnam Veterans, Plymouth VFW Veterans, and their two Auxiliaries do many things throughout the year to support other veterans, as well as veteran organizations. What many folks do not know, is that they do a great many things in our community as well.

They sponsor the local Scout Troop, they've sponsored Eagle Scout projects, they've participated in the Joy Road clean-up for at least 20 years, they go to schools and speak with the students, and the
list goes on and on.

To end this year, they partnered with the Salvation Army to provide toys and a holiday meal for struggling families at Christmas. This is the second year that our veterans have done this with the Salvation Army, and our veteran's participation was the idea of Darrel Bazeman, who is a respected member of the Plymouth-Canton Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 528.

This was a two-day event, and it ran like a well oiled machine. Everyone had scheduled times to show up, so the place wasn't crowded, and folks were able to take a little time to look for the perfect gifts
for their children.

On the first day, Moms and Dads were able to walk through a decent sized banquet hall setting that looked almost like Santa's workshop. All the toys were grouped by age which made it easy for parents. They had a shopping cart, and picked out toys for their kids that they knew
they would love.

They were all invited back the very next day, and that is where our veterans became involved. Darrel, along with VVA members, Ron Little, Pete Glasgow, and VVA 528 President, Bob Dew, showed up to pass out food to all the folks who were there the previous day. The food portion of this event ran just as smooth as the toy event.

The Salvation Army does a great job at locating and vetting families who are struggling during the holidays, and they take great joy in giving them a hand up. Our local veterans were more than happy to assist with food, and this is where a couple community partners became involved, and helped with the food boxes for the holiday dinner.

Our Vietnam Veterans Chapter donated the money for turkeys and hams, but the Canton Meijer store went out of their way to get the best possible prices, and get these turkeys and hams at the proper date for this event. It was not an easy task, and thanks goes out to a guy named Jerry, who is the Canton Meijer Meat Manager.

There is another person who helped in this endeavor, and that man is Julius Kassab, who owns Marco's Fine Wine & Deli on Wayne Road in Westland. Julius donated 100 bags of potatoes to go along with the food boxes. He does things like this because he loves our veterans, but more importantly, he loves to give back to the community.

Julius has been supporting our local veterans quietly for years, never wanting credit, attention, or photo ops. The satisfaction in being able to help out is all he wants. When I mentioned to him that this event was happening, he asked some questions. Mainly about the food. I explained that the folks would get a ham or turkey, and some canned goods, and boxed potatoes. He stopped me right there. He said, “Nobody should be eating boxed potatoes on Christmas day!”

He asked me if it would be possible for me to go and buy a hundred bags of potatoes to go along with our turkeys and hams, and he would pay for them. Actually, it was more like a direct order. “Bentley! Go buy a bunch of potatoes, bring me the receipt, and I'll pay for them! Nobody eats boxed potatoes on Christmas!” Julius is a big guy, so he got a quick “Yes Sir” from me.

Julius is a foodie. He loves good food, and he, along with his right hand man Mike “St. Mikey” Boone are great cooks. That's why folks flock to Marco's for hot food. It could be workers coming in for
lunch, or folks who want a carryout for dinner. Everyone loves Marco's food. The creative pizzas that St. Mikey comes up with are amazing. My wife loves his Steak Alfredo with Mushroom Pizza. If you
scroll through the pictures at the top of this story, you will see Julius and St. Mikey.

Our veterans also have an idea for Easter as well, so this relationship with Meijer is blossoming, along with the continued support of Julius at Marco's. If you like veteran friendly stores, I would suggest
Meijer and Marco's.

I was not able to attend the event this year, but I was there last year. What I remember is seeing the relief on the Moms and Dads faces, knowing that there would be presents under their tree, and a nice meal for Christmas was something that made my eyes leak over and over again.

It was a huge undertaking for the Salvation Army, as well as for Darrel, but when it was all over, I remember looking at him, and the look on his face was priceless. He didn't really say much, he just had a contented smile on his face, knowing that he had helped make a difference for a bunch of families that needed a hand up. It doesn't get any better than that...