10-Year-Old’s Essay About Father in Afghanistan Wins Heart of
Public Vote
The excitement surrounding the National Hockey League (NHL®) playoffs
just got even better as Discover today announced the winner of its Day
With the Cup™ contest – the Doran family of Fulton, New York.
Discover launched its contest in late March, encouraging hockey fans
across the nation to submit an original photo that best demonstrated
their passion for hockey, along with a 1,000 character-or-less
description that answered the question, “I deserve a day with the
Stanley Cup® because…” More than 850 submissions were uploaded to
Discover’s Facebook fan page, www.facebook.com/discover.
Heather Doran uploaded her son Noah’s compelling essay that captured the
attention of the public, which deemed him the winner by an overwhelming
number of votes.
Noah’s entry spoke of his Dad, Robert, a sergeant who left in early
January to serve his third tour in Afghanistan, and how the duo bonded
over hockey every weekend. He then credited his local hockey team, the
Fulton Red Raider Squirts, for helping him get through the tough
transition. Noah’s entry was accompanied by a photo of him and his Dad
in military uniform on the ice at a local hockey rink. Sgt. Doran serves
with Oswego, New York’s 444th Engineer Company, 411th
Engineer Brigade, 412th Theater Engineer Command of the U.S.
Army Reserve.
Noah, Heather, his brother Ethan and sister Jade, were presented with
the Stanley Cup® at the Cicero Twin Rinks in Cicero, New York this
morning. Noah’s hockey team, friends and local community soldiers joined
him in celebration while taking photos with the Stanley Cup®. The
experience was documented and is slated to be featured during Game 1 of
the Stanley Cup® Final. Noah and Heather also received round-trip
airline fare, hotel and tickets to one of the games of the Stanley Cup®
Final.
“We are delighted to help a great family like the Doran's realize their
dream,” said Jennifer Murillo, vice president of brand communications at
Discover. “Noah’s heartfelt entry pulled at the heart strings of
everyone – the number of public votes he received was a strong testament
of this. We at Discover are pleased to leverage our great partnerships –
like ours with the NHL® – to create special moments and memories that
will last a lifetime.”
Discover is the Official Card of the NHL®, NHL Winter Classic®, NHL
Awards™ and the NHL Draft™.
About Discover
Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) is a direct banking and payment
services company with one of the most recognized brands in U.S.
financial services. Since its inception in 1986, the company has become
one of the largest card issuers in the United States. The company
operates the Discover
card, America's cash rewards pioneer, and offers personal and
student loans, online savings accounts, certificates of deposit and
money market accounts through its Discover
Bank subsidiary. Its payment businesses consist of Discover
Network, with millions of merchant and cash access locations; PULSE,
one of the nation's leading ATM/debit networks; and Diners Club
International, a global payments network with acceptance in more than
185 countries and territories. For more information, visit www.discoverfinancial.com.
NHL, the NHL Shield and the wordmark NHL Winter Classic, and the
wordmark and image of the Stanley Cup are registered trademarks, and Day
With The Cup, NHL Awards, and NHL Draft are trademarks of the National
Hockey League. ©NHL 2012. All Rights Reserved.
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