Letters From Home
Westland Shopping Center to Participate in
Nationwide Troop Support Program;
Press Conference Set for Oct. 2, 2004
Westland, MI -- Westland Shopping Center will be participating in a nationwide letter-writing program at Jones Lang LaSalle managed shopping malls designed to support America’s men and women in the Armed Forces, mall officials announced today.
The troop support program -- “Letters from Home” -- will officially begin at a press conference set for 1p.m. on Oct. 2, 2004, three weeks after the third anniversary of the terrorist attacks. The press conference will be held in the mall’s East Court which has been made into a patriotic letter-writing station.
“With the recent anniversary of September 11th and the death of over a thousand US service personal in Iraq; we need to let our troops know that we support them 100% and pray for their safe return” says Marketing Manager Denise Mills.
“Letters from Home” is a program which originated at Sunset Mall, located in San Angelo, TX, but which has gained momentum across the country, thanks to the mall’s new management company Jones Lang LaSalle. To date, more than a dozen shopping malls in 10 different states have agreed to participate in the program. The malls hope to collect letters of support through the end of October and get the letters into the hands of military service members in Iraq by Christmas.
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“We are encouraging schools, businesses, churches, organizations and individuals to write letters of support to our troops,” said Mills. “We saw Americans join together after Sept. 11, 2001, for one cause and we’re inviting them to come together again to show a unified stance of support for our troops.”
The mall will provide “Letters from Home” stationery for people who wish to use it; however, any stationery will be accepted. The only requirement is that the letters are returned to the mall in unsealed envelopes to meet security requirements.
Letters should be addressed to “Dear Service Member” and will be collected in a red, white and blue “house” near Customer Service.
“A letter may seem such a simple act, but it is an eloquent way to express appreciation for our troops. Together, we can make difference one letter from home at a time,” Mills added.
About Jones Lang LaSalle
Westland Shopping Center is managed by Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL). Jones Lang LaSalle is the world’s leading real estate services and money management firm with a portfolio of approximately 725 million square feet of property under management worldwide, including more than 280 shopping centers on four continents. In the United States, Jones Lang LaSalle is the largest third-party manager of regional shopping centers with a 31 million-square-foot portfolio of 48 regional malls and transportation terminals across 22 states plus the District of Columbia. For more information, visit www.joneslanglasalle.com.
