When Minor League Baseball’s Great Lakes Loons resumed play in 2021, the Great Lakes Bay Region was a big winner as Dow Chemical Employees’ Credit Union (dcecu.org) and the Loons teamed up to distribute thousands of dollars locally.
As presenting sponsor of the Loons’ wins, DCECU committed to donating $100 to Arnold Center, Inc. – a nonprofit organization that empowers individuals with disabilities and other barriers to independence through enhanced vocational, social and life skill training and services that lead to greater self-sufficiency – for every regular-season Loons victory in 2021. While the Loons finished the season with 63 wins, DCECU increased the donation to $8,500. Through this same partnership, DCECU previously had donated $8,500 to Personal Assistance Options (PAO) in 2020 despite the cancellation of the MiLB season and $8,400 to The Diaper Alliance in 2019.
The Arnold Center is using DCECU’s donation to bolster its Midland Fresh mobile food pantry program, which distributes fresh produce and other food items to 10 Midland County sites weekly between June and September. All food distributed by Midland Fresh is free to community members.
“We are grateful for the generous donation from DCECU; their commitment to supporting local nonprofits and our community is outstanding,” said Arnold Center Executive Director Jennifer Grace after receiving the $8,500 check from DCECU Chief Executive Officer Michael Goad and Director of Marketing and Community Relations LaShanta Green at a Sept. 14 presentation.
DCECU also sponsored the Loons’ Rookie Signing Bonus program for children ages 3 to 12. Parents who wanted their kids to be the “Rookie of the Game” for a Loons home game in 2021 registered with the team, which randomly selected 30 children for the program over the course of the season. Courtesy of DCECU, each child drawn as a Rookie of the Game received four tickets to their appointed game, a T-shirt and $50 to put toward their savings, plus an additional $10 for each run the Loons scored during their appointed game. In all, the program distributed a total of $3,620 to participants.
For the 2021 season, DCECU remained the exclusive credit union partner of the Great Lakes Loons and naming rights partner of the Northern Lights Pavilion, the 500-person hospitality venue located down the left field line at Dow Diamond, the Loons’ home stadium.
“It was great to see Minor League Baseball resume in Midland this spring and summer – and even better to see the local impact of the Loons’ return,” Goad said. “DCECU considers it a privilege to partner with the Loons in ways that benefit the community beyond the ballpark.”
Loons President and General Manager Chris Mundhenk also was enthusiastic about the partnership between the team and DCECU – and its benefits to the community.
“The Loons are very fortunate to have a strong community-minded partner in DCECU,” Mundhenk said. “We are proud to align with an organization that is committed to creating positive opportunities and impact for nonprofits and youth throughout the Great Lakes Bay Region.”