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Michigan 10k swim to benefit veteran brain health

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Michigan 10k swim to benefit veteran brain health


(CBS DETROIT) – Michigan veterans die from suicide at much higher rates than the rest of the population, according to recent Veteran Affairs data.

The Step Up Foundation is working to prevent these deaths by funding research into veteran brain health. The 2024 “Find Your Way Home” swim in Grosse Ile will benefit the foundation.

This year marks the second year of the event. The 10k swim is Saturday, Sept. 14 from the Grosse Ile Yacht Club to the Detroit River Lighthouse.

“Swimming for me is a time just to kind of reflect back on military life. Friends I’ve lost. … Have conversations with guys I don’t get a chance to anymore. And just kind of make peace with things,” said PJ Ramsey, a Navy SEAL veteran and event director of the Step Up Foundation.

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The money raised will go towards causes that support veteran brain health.

“Plenty of veterans, plenty of teammates I have, have struggled with transitioning. I myself included with PTS, suicidal ideations, suicidal attempts. Honestly, with all the training I’ve been through in the military, the hardest thing I had to do was ask for help,” said Ramsey.

The Step Up Foundation was founded by Sara Wilkinson, who started it in honor of her husband, Chad Wilkinson, a Navy SEAL for 21 years who died by suicide.

“We found ways to donate his brain and do research. We learned he suffered not just from multiple TBIs but what’s called interface astroglial scarring. Which is blast wave injuries to the brain through combat and through training,” said Wilkinson.

Wilkinson said she started the foundation to help battle those invisible wounds veterans face.

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“The truth is, it’s an epidemic. We’ve had thousands and thousands of service members take their life. And so, it doesn’t matter — branch, rank, gender, time in service. They have given to us, and we need to stand up for them,” she said.

More than 30 swimmers will participate in the swim. The event will host an after-party at the Grosse Ile Yacht Club. The event will feature food, drinks and live music. You can buy tickets for the after-party. 

“Coming up to Grosse Isle last year for the first time, I just can’t even say what this community, how special they are,” said Wilkinson. “Grosse Isle has touched me in a way that will last a lifetime.”

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Detroit, MI

Detroit Lions injury update: Amik Robertson OUR for game (elbow)

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Detroit Lions injury update: Amik Robertson OUR for game (elbow)


On just the second defensive snap of the game, Detroit Lions cornerback Amik Robertson suffered a brutal-looking elbow injury. While Robertson was making a tackle, teammate Jack Campbell came crashing in and smashed into Robertson’s arm.

Robertson had to be escorted to the locker room with trainings stabilizing his arm. Initial reports from the team called it an elbow injury and he is questionable to return.

UPDATE: Robertson has been downgraded to out. He will not return.

If Robertson is out, it’s a devastating blow for the Lions defense, which is already missing several cornerbacks. Carlton Davis (IR), Emmanuel Moseley (non-football illness), Ennis Rakestraw (IR), and Khalil Dorsey (IR) are all currently out, with only Rakestraw expected to return. The only healthy cornerbacks on the active roster against the Commanders are Terrion Arnold, Kindle Vildor, and practice squad call-up Stantley Thomas-Oliver. Vildor stepped in for Robertson on the opening drive.

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We’ll provide more updates as they come in for the Lions. Let’s hope for the best for now.



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Detroit, MI

Detroit Lions have NFL’s second-longest active championship drought at 67 years

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Detroit Lions have NFL’s second-longest active championship drought at 67 years


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The Detroit Lions are trying to shed some franchise history during the 2025 NFL playoffs.

The Lions are the No. 1 seed in the NFC for the first time and host the Washington Commanders Saturday in the divisional round. With a win, the Lions could reach the NFC championship game for a second consecutive year and host the game for the first time in franchise history.

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If the Lions can win two playoff games against Washington and then the winner of the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Rams, Detroit they would reach the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history. They are the only NFC team to never reach the big game.

The Lions’ history has not been kind regarding championships. Detroit is one of 12 teams not to win a Super Bowl since it began in the 1966 season. The Lions are one of seven teams to win a championship before the Super Bowl era but haven’t won in the 66 seasons since their 1957 triumph.

The Vikings, Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Chargers, Tennessee Titans (then known as the Houston Oilers), Cleveland Browns and Buffalo Bills are the other teams to have a championship in history but no Super Bowl.

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NFL longest active championship droughts

The Lions have the second-longest active drought, trailing the Cardinals by a decade. The Lions, who won four NFL championships, most recently finished at the top of the league in 1957 (other championship years are 1935, 1952 and 1953). Famously after the 1957 championship, the Lions traded quarterback Bobby Layne, who starred on the three championship teams, and he cursed the franchise for 50 years without another championship.

The Lions are now at 67 years, but might have gotten some recent help from actor and fan Jeff Daniels.

The Cardinals, along with the Chicago Bears, are the oldest team in NFL history founded in 1920. The Cardinals have two championships, but last won in 1947 when they were based in Chicago. Their championship drought is at 77 years. The Cardinals lost in a classic Super Bowl to the Pittsburgh Steelers to conclude the 2008 season.

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The Oilers won their only two championships in the AFL in 1960-61.

The Chargers won their only championship in the AFL in 1963.

The Bills won consecutive AFL championships in 1964-65.

The Vikings won the NFL championship in 1969 but lost Super Bowl 4 to the Kansas City Chiefs in the final season before the AFL and NFL merged into one league.

Five franchises founded during the Super Bowl era — the Cincinnati Bengals, Jacksonville Jaguars, Atlanta Falcons, Houston Texans and Carolina Panthers — have never won a championship.

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The four teams without a Super Bowl appearance are the Lions, Browns, Texans and Jaguars, though the Lions are the only team to play in every season of the Super Bowl era and still be left out.

Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Follow Jared on X @jared_ramsey22, and email him at jramsey@freepress.com.

Stay tuned for the best Lions coverage throughout the playoffs and all year long at freep.com/sports/lions.

Follow the Detroit Free Press on Instagram (@detroitfreepress), TikTok (@detroitfreepress), YouTube (@DetroitFreePress), X (@freep), and LinkedIn, and like us on Facebook (@detroitfreepress).

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Detroit, MI

Man wins Detroit Lions playoff tickets following bakery raffle:

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Man wins Detroit Lions playoff tickets following bakery raffle:


(CBS DETROIT) – It’s a sweet way to celebrate your birthday: Free tickets to see the Detroit Lions.

“When they sent me a text message, this is a scam. I was like, ‘Don’t pick it up.’ Then they were like ‘If you don’t, we will go to the next person.’ I was like hold on,” Niko Monjarez said.

It’s a notification that almost seemed too good to be true. Niko just celebrated his birthday, and luckily, his aunt knew about Home Bakery’s raffle and was looking to score. The bakery recently went viral after creating a cake imitating the headstand celebration done by Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.

The cake is pretty popular in the Rochester community. After St.Brown visited the business, he offered up two tickets for Saturday’s game.

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“I thought I’d just get the receipt and stick it in his card, I probably won’t win. The love gift is, I spent two hours in the cold waiting just for him,” Monjarez’s aunt, Cyndi Wehrli, told CBS News Detroit.

The St. Brown cake is pretty popular in the Rochester community. After St.Brown visited the business, he offered up two tickets for Saturday’s playoff game.

Customers had to buy something from the bakery to participate. That decision alone was a game-changer.

“Normally, in January, I’m laying off, I’m cutting hours, some up to 25%. I don’t have to do that. Some of my people will look for a second job; they don’t have to do that,” said bakery owner Heather Tocco.

Tocco and her team decided on the headstand cake weeks ago. It took around 200 hours to complete and stands just over 6 feet tall.

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“We actually took the image of him on his head and expanded it to the height that we wanted,” she said.

Wehrli says she is in disbelief that her nephew won. As a lifelong Lions fan, she’s proud to witness the team’s progress.

“I think it’s so amazing that St. Brown did what he did and used a local entity,” she said.

Monjarez isn’t surprised his aunt had the winning receipt. He says she does a lot of good in the world. With the win, he now gets the chance to surprise another family member.

“My dad’s been a lifetime Lions fan. This is historic, and to be able to go see that is a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” Monjarez said.

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The cake display will stay up until the Super Bowl, while the Home Bakery team is planning to replace it with a Vince Lombardi display.



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