Eminem's Letter to Detroit- Final Four as shown on CBS 4/4/09

I saw this when it aired, and it is truly amazing.  I am so proud to be from Detroit!

This is great.  I will always be a Detroiter!  

Perhaps we should start an entire topic based on uplifting the City...let's talk good news!!!

Detroit Three find hope in centerfield

BY MITCH ALBOM
FREE PRESS COLUMNIST

When the Tigers open their season this week, fans will look to
centerfield
at Comerica Park and see the greenery, the flagpoles and the giant
fountain. And, as usual, every time there's a Detroit home run, those
fountains will erupt.

That spot, in the stadium business, is what they call prime real estate.
Companies pay big money to have their logo smack dab in the middle, so
that
every time fans gaze out there, the brand is what they see.

For the last few years, General Motors has sponsored that fountain, and
paid a substantial fee to do so. This season, with all that has happened
in
the auto business, GM's folks called the Tigers and said, regretfully,
they
could no longer afford it. Given the layoffs, the bailouts, the threat
of
bankruptcy, well, owning centerfield was too great a luxury.

GM had to step aside.

Which is when Mike Ilitch, the Tigers' owner, stepped in.

There were other bidders. Other offers. Who wouldn't want that real
estate?
A deal of three years worth between $1.5 million and $2 million was on
the
table.

Ilitch said no thanks.

He was going to give it away.

Or maybe "give it back" is a better way of putting it.

Chalk up an outfield assist

"It just seems strange to have the car companies in trouble," he told me
this past week. "The Big Three, where would this city be without them? I
mean, my father came from the old country and got a job at Ford's. It
put
food on our table.

"It's scary to think that any of those carmakers could go away."

So Ilitch told his people to thank the potential paying customers, but
to
say that the centerfield fountain this year was spoken for. It would be
the
feature site for General Motors, Ford and Chrysler.

For free.

No charge.

Not one penny.

"It's just a small opportunity to respond to what's happening," Ilitch
said, embarrassed by the attention.

There's nothing small about it.

Every business has been affected by the collapsing economy; baseball
teams
are no exception. Walking away from a couple million dollars is not
considered a wise financial move. Who turns away paying customers?

In this case, Ilitch did.

Because sometimes it's about the where and the who, not just the how
much.

A message from the ballclub

"I thought for a few weeks before deciding," Ilitch admitted. "I didn't
want to offend anybody. I didn't want to put off the foreign carmakers.
And
I didn't want people to think we couldn't sell the fountain. As a
businessman, you do worry about those things.

"But I finally said, 'The heck with it.' I want to do something to
help."

So starting with the home opener this Friday afternoon, the Chrysler,
General Motors and Ford logos will be on an equal plane above the
fountain.
And beneath those logos will be a few new words:

"The Detroit Tigers support our automakers."

It may be as close to a social statement as centerfield has ever made.

Visitors in Detroit for this weekend's Final Four may think our small,
thriving downtown looks a lot like other cities' downtowns. But there is
something different beneath the surface.

Here, we construct in the face of adversity. We build on hope. Pure
investors will tell you a city with rampant unemployment, enormous
budget
shortfalls, a troubled school system and a laughable city council is not
a
place to put your money. We do it anyhow.

We do it because we love our past and we believe in our future. We do it
because the alternative would be to close shop altogether. We do it
because
last week there were stories about the gleaming new Yankee Stadium,
which
cost $1.5 billion and has seats as high as $2,625 a game -- and here is
Ilitch giving away his fountain for free.

Detroit may be the new home of the bumpy ride, but as the Three
Musketeers
once discovered, it's a little smoother when you grab hands with others.
Think about that the next time a home run sends that fountain shooting
up
to those logos. Sometimes it really is all for one and one for all.

GREAT VIDEO !!!! Thanks for posting it Terry

The video is great but the article from Mitch Albom about Mr. Ilitch brought a lump of pride & hope to my throat.  Thank you Mr. Ilitch.

My sentiments exactly Carol!  I really did shed a tear! Awesome stories - thanks for posting!

My pride is overflowing as well.  Mr. Ilitch, Mitch and Eminem - we need more people like you.  Never think that we don't appreciate what you do to support the people of this great city and state.  Thank you so much.

Great video tribute.  We need more positive messages like this!

Terry & Natale, thank you both so much for giving us these.  Watching the video and reading the column back-to-back had tears running down my face!  It's nice to have the grit and determination and not just can-do but WILL-do attitude of Detroit's people demonstrated so clearly. 

I was particularly struck by Eminem's last words to the city: 

"Sometimes down, but never out.  Take strength in us, your people."

We are the strength of Detroit.  We are the source of the future.  Our attitude determines what's possible for Detroit.  The actions we take, every day, big and small, make all the difference.  As Eminem ended, "Stay up, Detroit"!

Mr. Illich has always been a "class act" and we're so lucky to have him here supporting Detroit. 

Thanks for posting this video, Terry.  Anxious to get others here to view it as well.

Definitely both are impressive.  I was really impressed by Emenem because I am not a big fan of his.  This was done very classy.

I was out of town so I missed some of this but thanks for posting...it gives one a real sense of pride.  I have to say we did get good press in out of state papers during the Final Four!  Finally.  Even on the national news Leno's positive comments were out there on Detroit!  Good press on our city for almost a whole week, wow! 

Terry, great of you to include Eminem's words, like Detroit he is an image-enigma.

Natale, thanks for Mitch's words on Mr. Illich's classy move for the home opener.

I sent both of these to my friend, Robert Dempster, who is working to do a documentary called "Save Detroit." I am certain, if funding and project are approved, that many in MCC will be interviewed. We are, more than any other city, a city of contrasts, a true Ying and Yang.

Terry, you are creating great things here. Letting all of us think beyond ourselves.

That sure is the essence of Detroit.  I'm proud to call myself a Detroiter.  To be from Detroit is to possess a certain toughness that isn't everywhere else.  It's not a physical toughness.  It's not a badass attitude.  It's not about being Tommy Hearns.

It's a mental toughness.  We all have it.  The longer you are a Detroiter, the tougher you get.  Once you are on your 3rd or 4th time through an industry turndown, you earn a stripe.  But it doesn't matter how many stripes you have.

What is captured in this video is the look.  The nod.  The silent high five that every Detroiter executes.  The knowledge and the pride that not for our Parents and Grand Parents and even our Great Grand Parents that this WORLD would not exist in the form that it does today.

There are many people around this planet who do not understand this.  What ties us all together is that we DO. 

We get it.  We understand it and we go on about our business executing what many others will not, would not and never will. 

It's in the pictures on the walls of our family rooms.  It's in our garages and basements.  We give it to our kids and we don't even realize it.  We don't ask for acknowledgement.

Because we have IT and that is our reward. 

The toughness will carry this region and this country, and thus this world through.  On the other side, we'll all have one more stripe.  We won't display them.  They are not for others to see.  They will simply be viewed by us all, in the look, the nod and the silent high five.

Wow Mike you certainly hit the nail on the head.  I grew up in Detroit and have lived in Colorado and Los Angeles and came back to Detroit and people there are different and don't understand.  You are right we have a toughness, which is our strength.  Great Post Mike.