Manal Alyassen, 11, was thrilled to be able to get a few things for herself and for her mom after picking out some race cars for the kids in the hospital.
"I bought some AirPods, I bought some arts and crafts stuff, some teddy bears," Alyassen said. "I bought my mama a necklace."
Mantha was very touched by the fact that when his friend from the Boys and Girls Clubs was shopping for herself and her family, she also wanted to buy her new friend from the Wings a watch because Mantha had mentioned he wanted one.
Instead, Mantha said she should keep it for one of her family members.
"This has been great because this is kind of their first interactions with players from the Red Wings so this is awesome," Kyles said. "Now they're putting faces with names so this is great. It'll be a continued built relationship from here on out because this is something they'll never forget."
The week before Christmas, the Wings will make their annual visit to the Children's Hospital of Michigan to visit the kids there and deliver all the presents.
"It's awesome," Glendening said. "To see both sides is pretty cool. You see these kids, they're searching for gifts that they think that other kids would like. To see the kids at the hospital receive those gifts is awesome."
Mantha said the annual hospital visit is one of the highlights of the holiday season.
"The smiles that they have on their faces at that point is just amazing," Mantha said. "Their parents are thrilled to see us. Even some of the kids, they watch us play and they know who we are so as soon as they see us walking into the room, I think they forget everything and they're just enjoying the moment that we're there. It's always fun."
The Wings always say how grateful they are to be able to bring some holiday cheer to kids who have to be in the hospital during the holidays.
"To see the kids' eyes light up in their hospital beds or throughout the building, it's something that really, it sticks with you because you realize that those kids are just like anybody else's children, just unfortunately they have to be in the hospital over the holiday," Brown said. "So to know that we have a roster of players and their significant others here at the Red Wings who care enough to support those kids during the holidays, it truly is something that we cherish at the organization."
The Wings and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan also both cherish the bond they have created through these shared events.
"This is a really great program," Kyles said. "It's teaching youth about giving back to others, even in the holiday season. That's great, that's awesome. Then they're also empowering our youth by giving them a chance to shop for themselves and building self-esteem and motivation, which is awesome.
"It's great that the Red Wings are involved with Boys and Girls Clubs in the inner city and involved with kids. Now our youth can actually touch Red Wings players and staff and now that relationship is building and is going to be great in the future. I think the Red Wings Foundation and Boys and Girls Club have a great future (together) helping youth."
