Last month, the Milwaukee Brewers announced plans for the "Give-Back Game," an event to raise proceeds for great causes. With this initiative, ticket sales proceeds from the Brewers final home game today are being donated to charity.
Brewers fans rallied to the occasion, and the result is that four local charities will receive over $335,000 for their causes. Tickets for today’s game were sold for $10 each, and fans had the opportunity to direct which charity would receive their $10. In addition, fans were encouraged to add on to their purchases with additional funds that were added to the totals.
The four beneficiaries include the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee, Make-A-Wish Wisconsin, The MACC Fund and the Wisconsin Humane Society.
"On behalf of Mark Attanasio and everyone here at the Brewers, we appreciate how the fans stepped up and supported this initiative with tremendous passion," said Rick Schlesinger, Brewers Chief Operating Officer. "The Give Back Game is an extension of our commitment to do something special during the last home game each year, and this was a unique opportunity to reward the fans while also raising significant funding for these four great partners."
Based on ticket sales for today’s game, as well as where fans directed their donations, the amounts raised for each charity are as follows:
Wisconsin Humane Society: $81,378
Make-A-Wish Wisconsin: $76,201
Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee: $65,493
The MACC Fund: $62,172
The Wisconsin Humane Society paced the way with the most tickets sold and also the most funds raised. As a result, the organization earned a $50,000 bonus from the Brewers for a total donation of $131,378 to the cause.
Media partners in the community stepped up to help promote the effort, with each cause backed by a different media group. "Teammates" include The MACC Fund/620 WTMJ, 94-5 KTI Country and TODAY’S TMJ4; Make-A-Wish Wisconsin/FM106.1, V100.7, 97.3 NOW, 95.7 Big FM, News/Talk 1130 WISN and Big 920 Sports; Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee/FOX Sports Wisconsin; and Wisconsin Humane Society/WKLH, WHQG, WJMR and WNRG.
Also stepping up to the plate, several Milwaukee Brewers players teamed up with the four charities to help promote the game. Each player used their social media platforms tweeting with the hashtag #GiveBackGame to promote not just the entire initiative, but also their specific charity’s involvement. Partner players included Keon Broxton/Boys & Girls Clubs, Corey Knebel/Make-A-Wish, Tyler Thornburg/MACC Fund and Scooter Gennett/Wisconsin Humane Society.
