As the United States honors its military veterans on this Veterans Day, it’s instructive to understand that some very real sacrifices were made by athletes to keep the country free. Some paid with their lives; others sacrificed the primes of their athletic careers to serve in the military. Some are household names. Willie Mays, Joe DiMaggio and Jackie Robinson … [Read more...]
Signatures for Soldiers Turns Autographs into Assistance
Like a lot of collectors, Tim Virgilio likes getting his mail. Often a former athlete has responded to his request and his mailbox contains autographed cards or other items. They’re not for his own personal collection, though. He’s doing it to help military members both past and present and their families. The Georgia collector is the driving force behind Signatures for … [Read more...]
Upper Deck to Donate 6,000 Hockey Card Packs to Military Charity
Upper Deck celebrated Veteran's Day by announcing a donation of over 6,000 packs of new NHL trading cards to a charity that helps children of military families to play hockey. Defending the Blue Line provides free hockey equipment and access to hockey camps at no cost to participants. And to help these young hockey aficionados develop a greater love for the game and NHL … [Read more...]
Cardboard in the Desert: A Soldier Remembers, Collects 1991 Topps Desert Shield
In the 22 years since they were shipped to troops in Saudi Arabia, the 1991 Topps Desert Shield baseball cards have gained quite a following. However, there aren't many current followers of the set who can say they were stationed in the Middle East at the time and actually came home with the cards. Virginia collector James Dial is one of them, a former soldier and passionate … [Read more...]
Upper Deck Dishes Out Packs at Veterans Day Parade, Sends More to Troops
Upper Deck has been busy honoring America's active military and veterans by passing out thousands of free trading cards. For a number of years Upper Deck has been donating trading cards packs to Operation Gratitude; a non-profit organization that sends 100,000-plus “care packages” annually to U.S. service members deployed in hostile regions across the world. This year, the … [Read more...]