Platinum Equity Founder and CEO Tom Gores’ Annual Toys For Tots Support Vital to Charity’s Mission: ‘One of Our Largest Private Donors’

In 2006, Platinum Equity Founder and Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores and his wife, Holly, made their first donations to Michigan-based organizations to help underserved families during the holiday season.

A few years later, the Gores family began its partnership with Toys for Tots, a pairing that’s responsible for delivering more than 147,500 toys and bicycles to an estimated 75,000 children in Detroit, Flint and other surrounding areas, which prompted a Toys for Tots representative to thank the Gores family for being “one of the largest private donors” to the charity’s foundation in early December

“Tom and Holly Gores are an amazing partner,” Marine Toys for Tots Foundation official Gunnar Spafford said at the annual giveback event held at historic Eastern Market in downtown Detroit. “We can’t put this event on without them. They are truly a piece of the Detroit community.”

The Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots event is one of multiple holiday giveback events the Gores family sponsors. After the Detroit event, the family concluded spreading holiday cheer at the Voices for Children Child Advocacy Center in Flint.

“This is one of my favorite times of the year as we’re able to provide so much joy and holiday cheer to hundreds of children and families,” Tom Gores said in a release. “Every child deserves to smile and feel the excitement that comes with opening a gift during the holidays. We’re grateful for the support of Toys for Tots and all our amazing partners who have continued to step up for our community for nearly two decades.”

Volunteers turned Eastern Market’s Shed 5 into ‘Santa’s workshop’ for the Toys for Tots event. Inside the shed, holiday lights hung from the ceiling while thousands of bikes and other toys for every age lined the building to create a traditional shopping experience.

“(This) gives me a great peace of mind as I have a 3-week-old child and I’m on maternity leave so this definitely helps us out,” Detroit resident Raven Glass said. “We don’t get the same pay that you get when you are working so this provides me a lot of reassurance that my kids have something to open up on Christmas Day.”

For the shopping spree, balance bikes with helmets were given to all children younger than 3. Children aged 4-7 received bicycles with training wheels and helmets. Youth ages 8-10 received scooters and Lego sets, and those ages 11-13 received wireless headphones.

For the Detroit event, 750 families were selected. Pistons front office staff and other volunteers helped to distribute and select toys. The Detroit Youth Choir also performed to add to the holiday experience.

“It comes from the generosity of Tom and Holly and the Marine Corps, their cooperative spirit in putting this all together for the families here in the Detroit area,” Pistons Senior Advisor Dwane Casey said while volunteering. “It is something wonderful to see. Each and every year that I’ve been a part of the Pistons organization, I’ve enjoyed coming down and being a part of it.”

‘It’s a passion for both of them’

Brooke McCormick and her five children were greeted by a holiday surprise at the Voices for Children Child Advocacy Center.

Upon arrival, they experienced a pizza and dance party with Pistons mascot Hooper. And then the children told Mr. And Mrs. Claus what they wanted for Christmas while volunteers picked up the requested presents.

“Any mother is just super happy to see their kids so full of joy,” McCormick said. “This is their first time, and my boys are really into sports, so when they heard the Pistons (helped) put this on, they started crying.”

For the fifth consecutive year, the Gores family partnered with Voices for Children to provide a holiday experience for the children the agency serves. The agency, which is a Flint-based organization dedicated to serving and protecting child survivors of abuse and their families, has served families in Genesee and Shiawassee counties through treatment, education and increasing community awareness since 2018. Tom Gores was raised in the Flint area.

“This is a pivotal moment in their life,” Voices for Children President and CEO Claudnyse Holloman said. “These gifts are really what makes this year a much better year for them.

“It’s what the Christmas holiday season is about because for them, they’ve been through the most unimaginable things. But the gift that they’re receiving is specifically for them. It’s dedicated to them. It was intentionally selected for them, and they get to unwrap that.”

The McCormick siblings were among the more than 140 children who received gifts.

“With Tom being from this community, Flint has a special place in his heart,” Pistons President of Business Operations Melanie Harris said while volunteering. “It’s great to see the investment that he makes not just with resources, but with his family here to make sure Flint and Genesee counties know how important they are to Tom and Holly.”

Through the two events, more than 10,000 toys, bicycles, scooters and headphones were distributed to underserved families in Detroit, Flint and surrounding neighborhoods. The Gores family also supported The Salvation Army Downriver Corps with an additional $25,000 donation.