Ion To Aid Homeless With ‘Blanket New York’

ION Television and Defending Santa star Dean Cain are coming together to help New Yorkers “Get Wrapped Up” this holiday season through a partnership with the Coalition for the Homeless — the nation’s oldest advocacy and direct service organization helping homeless men, women and children — and a consumer-driven event promoting the network’s upcoming slate of original holiday movies.

Both events will take place during National Hunger and Homeless Awareness Week (Nov. 16-24) and lead up to the premiere of Defending Santa, the first in Ion’s 2013 original holiday movie catalog.

Ion’s holiday schedule kicks off Nov. 24 with a full day of movies and continues airing on Black Friday, Dec. 23-25 and Sundays through Christmas. This year’s lineup also features the premieres of My Santa, Holiday Road Trip, Christmas Belle and All I Want for Christmas, plus the return of 13 original favorites.

Joined by Dean Cain, Ion Television will donate 2,000 blankets to help needy New Yorkers stay warm this holiday season. The donations will be made through the Coalition’s Grand Central Food Program, which provides hot, nutritious meals to nearly 1,000 homeless and hungry New Yorkers on the streets of the city 365 nights a year. The remaining blankets will be donated throughout the winter.

“Ion is proud to support this wonderful organization by providing some warmth this winter to those who need it most,” said Brandon Burgess, Ion chairman-CEO. “The holidays represent a time for giving, and we hope these blankets provide a comfort to those who receive them.”

Ion’s blanket donation will take place on Nov. 20 outside of St. Bartholomew’s (325 Park Avenue at 51st Street) beginning at 5:30 p.m. From there, donations will be made at more than 30 street locations throughout Manhattan and the Bronx by the Coalition’s three delivery vans.

On Nov. 21, Ion Television will reach out to consumers with a stunt to promote its new original holiday movies, including the premiere of Defending Santa. At the event, visitors will receive branded fleece blankets and free rides in Ion-wrapped pedi-cabs between 10 a.m. and noon.

The stunt will take place on 6th Avenue between 48th and 49th Streets, where brand ambassadors will hand out the blankets to consumers and coordinate pedi-cab rides from the Ion Television dispatch center. Visitors will also learn how they can make donations to the Coalition for the Homeless.