Bleier chairs PRESENTS FOR PATIENTS® campaign

GIBSONIA, Pa. - Rocky Bleier, four-time Super Bowl Champion, former Pittsburgh Steeler and Veteran, is the honorary co-chair of this year’s PRESENTS FOR PATIENTS^® campaign, which spreads Christmas cheer by delivering holiday gifts to thousands of Pennsylvania seniors who are living in nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

“I am honored to serve as Honorary Chairperson for the 31^st season of PRESENTS FOR PATIENTS^® which makes the holiday season brighter for nursing home patients,” said Bleier. “I am honored to give back to the men and women who have given so much of themselves in their lifetimes.” This decorated United States veteran has been participating in the popular Christmas program for more than 10 years, cheering hundreds of patients, many of them fellow veterans and all of them great Steeler fans.

The official launch of this year’s PRESENTS FOR PATIENTS® campaign was Tuesday evening, Dec. 2, with the lighting of a Christmas tree on the St. Barnabas Health System campus in Gibsonia. The launch was timed to coincide with Giving Tuesday, a day devoted to philanthropy either through financial giving or through good deeds.

This year, PRESENTS FOR PATIENTS® will provide gifts to 15,000 patients in long-term care homes. The personal visits by volunteers and campaign donors ensure these residents are not forgotten during what can be a very lonely time for seniors living in health care facilities.

PRESENTS FOR PATIENTS® is seeking two things: donations to pay for gifts, and volunteers to deliver them. For more information and to learn how you can donate or participate, call 724-444-5521, text “GIVE” to 41444 or visit www.PRESENTSFORPATIENTS.com.

“I find it so rewarding to be a part of this incredible program,” said PRESENTS FOR PATIENTS® spokesperson Valerie Day Wilden. “The nursing home patients are always so happy to just be remembered during the holidays and I’m proud to play a role in that happiness.”

Volunteers at PRESENTS FOR PATIENTS® Headquarters will arrange for your family, company or organization to deliver donated gifts to deserving patients, including our nation’s honored veterans, in more than 200 participating facilities in our area.