100 Children Take Over Jacksonville Jaguars Home Turf for the Night!

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Aug. 4, 2014 - PRLog -- Last night, Ashley Furniture HomeStore-Jacksonville, the Jaguars’ Head Coach Gus Bradley and his family, and Jaguars players Allen Bradford, J.T. Thomas, Ryan Davis, and Jacques McClendon hosted 100 local children for the 2014 “A Hope to Dream” Stadium Sleepover at EverBank Field!  The Ashley/Jaguars teams treated the kids and their chaperones to a dance party with Jaguars’ mascot Jaxson de Ville and cheerleaders from THE ROAR, a great meal donated by BUBBA burger, and plenty of games.  The biggest thrill for the children came when Michaela Bradley, wife of Jacksonville Jaguars head Coach Gus Bradley, told the children the beds they were sleeping in at the stadium were going home with them.

Ashley Furniture HomeStore CEO and Managing Member Howard Fineman said seeing the excitement of the children when they learned they would finally have beds of their own was as thrilling for him and his team as it was for the kids. “When we started the ‘A Hope to Dream’ program here in Jacksonville, we never imagined it would grow to this!  We could only dream that we would see sleepovers held in NFL stadiums–dozens of Ashley Furniture HomeStores engaging in the program for children in need in their own communities–or taking the program to London to help 100 children in the U.K. for the first ever event of its kind at London’s famed Wembley Stadium.”

Jacksonville Jaguars Head Coach Gus Bradley said he and his family have been touched by the “A Hope to Dream”program, as well.  “We are so fortunate, and so honored to be a part of this program.  As an NFL Coach, I see every day the importance of exercise and of good nutrition, but it all has to start with a good night’s sleep.  To be able to give these children that one critical basic in life is a blessing—to me, to my wife, Michaela, and to our four children.”

Last year’s first “A Hope to Dream” Stadium Sleepover reached 50 children.  This year the Ashley Furniture HomeStore team and their partners; The Daniel Kids Foundation, Greater Jacksonville Area USO, Jay Fund, MaliVai Washington Youth Foundation, and Kids First of Florida doubled the number to 100 children!  In addition to BUBBA burger, community partners including Florida Blue, Pepperidge Farms, Proctor and Gamble, Peterbrooke Chocolatier, and Frito-Lay provided volunteers and products for the event.

The Ashley Furniture HomeStore team along with members of the Jacksonville Jaguars leave for London at the end of this month to host the “A Hope to Dream” Stadium Sleepover at Wembley Stadium on August 31^st.