Motor City NYE Announces Title and Presenting Sponsors

Motor City NYE ("The Drop") today announced Meridian Health Plan will once again be the title sponsor of this year's free downtown celebration. Meridian Motor City NYE, presented by Quicken Loans, will be held from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. at Campus Martius Park and Cadillac Square Saturday, December 31, 2016.

"We are thrilled to welcome Meridian Health back for its second-consecutive year as title sponsor of The Drop," said Jerrid Mooney, co-founder of Motor City NYE. "Meridian is an outstanding corporate and community partner and we are thrilled to have them present our seventh annual New Year's Eve celebration."

"As a family-owned health care provider, we are honored Meridian has the opportunity to be the title sponsor for an event allowing family and friends to gather in the heart of Detroit and ring in the New Year," said Sean Cotton, Chief Administrative Officer of Meridian Health Plan.

Additionally, Detroit-based Quicken Loans will support the event as presenting sponsor.

"There's no better place to ring in the New Year with family and friends than in the heart of downtown Detroit," said Helen Johnson, Quicken Loans Vice President of Community Activation. "The energy and optimism in our beautiful city is at an all-time high, which will make for an even better celebration than ever before."

Detroit-based Faygo has signed on to become the Official Pop of The Drop. Faygo is sponsoring free light tubes to use at the event. Visitors can pick up their light tubes at the event after signing up at www.motorcitynye.com.

"Faygo is excited to ring in 2017 with our favorite people down at Campus Martius Park! We are thrilled to be the official Pop of the Drop in the heart of the city. Can't wait to see everyone there!" said Dawn Burch, Marketing Manager for Faygo.

Inspired by New Year's Eve celebrations around the world, Meridian Motor City NYE, presented by Quicken Loans, is a free celebration, which will convene Detroiters and visitors far and wide for the chance to ring in 2017 together.

The highlight of Meridian Motor City NYE is a unique Detroit-themed ball drop. A glowing 7-foot "D" mounted on an 8-foot glowing sphere will descend once for children and families - the Kids' Drop - at 6:30 p.m., and again for the main event, just seconds before midnight.

Well before the countdown to the New Year begins, the festivities will kick off in Campus Martius Park and Cadillac Square at 4 p.m. The area will be enlivened with both indoor and outdoor activities.

A 17,000 square-foot heated and carpeted structure - The Grand Celebration Party Pavilion - will feature musical performances and a plethora of free activities and games - perfect for the whole family. A kids zone will include popular family-friendly acts, such as Cirque Amongus, the Detroit Youth Choir, John Davis (The VIBE Man), balloon artists, bounce houses, face painting and a variety of jungle gym activities.

Outside, guests can enjoy exciting performances from the main stage, warm food, refreshments, and cocktails (21+) prepared by local food trucks and restaurants. Guests can gather around wood burning warming stations positioned throughout the event, or take shelter inside the heated Grand Celebration Party Pavilion. Free indoor activities will conclude at 6:30 p.m. when the "D" drops for an early kid-friendly countdown. Starting at 8 p.m., the party cranks up the fun. Meridian Motor City NYE will feature free performances by Detroit's hottest bands, including Angela Davis Band, JUKEBOXX, Pato Motown Band, Motor City Groove, the Luther Keith Blues Band and more who will light up the main stage. In between sets, guest DJs will drop beats all night long, keeping Detroit's largest outdoor NYE party hopping until 1 a.m. Partygoers can also enjoy circus entertainment, fire performers, and sideshow performers.

Motown Countdown For the VIP experience, enjoy the Meridian Motor City New Year's Eve official VIP party: The Motown Countdown starting at 8 p.m. The Grand Celebration Party Pavilion will be transformed into a mega party to ring in the New Year with the best views of The Drop from inside the huge heated structure. The second-annual Motown Countdown will feature two stages, two dance floors, and multiple fully stocked bars. The event will be hosted by Slim from Channel 95.5 FM, and the price of admission includes live performances by the Weekend Comeback, Tosha Owens Band, DJ Zig Zag, DJ Ric Nasty, plus additional DJs, entertainment, and dancing. Guests of The Motown Countdown will enjoy a premium bar (admission includes eight drink tickets), the SKYY Vodka Specialty Martini Bar, a reserved viewing area, party favors, midnight Champagne stations, pizza, two balloon drops, private heated executive restrooms, and access to the main event outside. Tickets to the VIP party start at $85 for those who plan early. Current pricing on tickets can be found at www.MotownCountdown.com.

For more information on Meridian Motor City NYE, presented by Quicken Loans, or to purchase tickets to the Motown Countdown, please visit www.MotorCityNYE.com or call 313-355-0413. Find MCNYE on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MCNYE, or Twitter at www.twitter.com/motorcitynye. This year's event will support The Community Health and Social Services (CHASS), in southwest Detroit. For more information, please go to www.chasscenter.org.

Reach millions of Metro Detroiters. Sponsorships for Detroit's largest and most widely anticipated New Year's Eve event, Meridian Motor City NYE, are still available. More information is available by calling Matt Flynn at 248-202-4662, or by emailing matt@ultimatefunproductions.com.

About Meridian

Meridian Health Plan is a family-owned, family-operated health plan with extensive experience in its subsidiary operations in Michigan, Illinois and Iowa. Meridian's affiliates include Medicaid and Medicare health plans and prescription drug plans, a commercial plan available through the Health Insurance Marketplace and MeridianRx, a Pharmacy Benefit Management company. Meridian Health Plan currently serves more than 750,000 members. For more information, visit www.mhplan.com.

About Quicken Loans

Detroit-based Quicken Loans Inc. is the nation's second largest retail home mortgage lender. The company expects its total close loan volume to reach close to $320 billion of mortgage volume across all 50 states between 2013 and the end of 2016. Quicken Loans generates loan production from web centers located in Detroit, Cleveland and Scottsdale, Arizona. The company also operates a centralized loan processing facility in Detroit, as well as its San Diego-based One Reverse Mortgage unit. Quicken Loans ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction for Primary Mortgage Origination" in the United States by J.D. Power for the past seven consecutive years, 2010 - 2016, and highest in customer satisfaction among all mortgage servicers the past three years, 2014 - 2016.

Quicken Loans was ranked No. 5 on Fortune magazine's annual "100 Best Companies to Work For" list in 2016, and has been among the top-30 companies for the last 13 years. It has been recognized as one of Computerworld magazine's '100 Best Places to Work in IT' the past 12 years, ranking No. 1 in 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2007, 2006 and 2005. The company moved its headquarters to downtown Detroit in 2010, and now more than 10,000 of its 15,000 team members work in the city's urban core. For more information about Quicken Loans, please visit www.QuickenLoans.com, on Twitter at @QLnews, and on Facebook at Facebook.com/QuickenLoans.

About The Community Health and Social Services

The Community Health and Social Services (CHASS) is a community-based, not for profit organization formed to develop, promote, and provide comprehensive, accessible and affordable quality primary health care and support services to all residents of the community, with special emphasis on the underserved African American and Latino populations. CHASS is committed to the overall wellbeing of the community.

About The Drop, Motor City NYE, LLC

Founded in 2009 by Detroit business owner Tony Piraino and Detroit resident Jerrid Mooney, Motor City New Year's Eve was conceived to become a major community event, showcasing the center of Detroit with the metropolitan area and beyond. The free family-friendly event by day, and festive gathering for adults at night, grew annually with support from Detroit-based businesses, such as Opportunity Detroit and Meridian Health. Looking to take the event to new heights, Piraino and Mooney partnered with Michigan-based event producers Ultimate Fun Productions and The Social Connection in 2013. Motor City New Year's Eve has since grown to become Detroit's largest and most publicized New Year's Eve event, drawing up to 25,000 revelers in 2015. Mooney, Ultimate Fun Productions and The Social Connection have continued to grow Motor City New Year's Eve. For more information, or to inquire about sponsorships, please visit www.MotorCityNYE.com or call 313-355-0413.

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