Ndamukong Suh to host Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan’s 10th Annual Celebrity Wheelchair Basketball Game

NFL Rookie of the Year, Ndamukong Suh, will host Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan’s (RIM) 10^th Annual Celebrity Wheelchair Basketball Game at Oakland University on Thursday, September 22, 2011 from 6:00-8:30 p.m. This unique, one-of-a-kind fundraiser supports the wheelchair sports program at RIM.

The game features Detroit’s favorite sports celebrities and radio and television personalities, who compete in wheelchairs along with RIM’s award-winning wheelchair basketball team, the Detroit Diehards.

Prior to the start of the Celebrity Game, doctors, therapists and nurses from RIM will challenge Oakland University’s Athletic Department to a wheelchair basketball game at 6:00 p.m. The Celebrity Game will start at 7:00 p.m.

All proceeds from the Celebrity Wheelchair Basketball Game benefit RIM’s SportsAbility program which provides persons with disabilities the opportunity to compete in competitive and recreational sports.

Tickets for the event are $8 for adults and $5 for kids 12 and under. For more information visit www.celebritywheelchairbasketball.com

Detroit Medical Center First Site in Michigan to Offer “Healthy” Vending Machines

A granola snack bar might not be bad a vending selection, but what if that vending machine could give you a snack bar that is all natural, gluten and wheat free, has a low glycemic index, has fiber, no trans fats, diary and cholesterol free, very low sodium and no sulphur dioxide. Now that's a snack you can live with.

The Detroit Medical Center has been selected as the first site in Michigan to receive newly designed vending machines that dispense wholesome snacks and beverages.

Michigan's first 2bU vending machines have been installed in the lunchrooms of DMC's

Orchestra Place

administration offices and DMC Children's Hospital of Michigan. The machines, distributed and serviced by Continental Canteen, offer gluten free, organic, all-natural, locally sourced, allergen free, vegan and kosher snacks and beverages with the cost of each item ranging from $1.25 to $2.50. 2bU also provides an interactive digital screen that tells the consumer about each product's nutritional value, calorie count and more before finalizing the selection. 

"When people are busy, stressed and hungry, all too often they grab a nutritionally empty, sugar-laden candy bar or a soda, without even thinking twice about it. As a healthcare system, we want to advocate that making healthy snack choices can make a great difference in your health and wellness," said Dr. Kahn, DMC's Medical Director of Wellness Programs. "When your body is healthier, you mind is healthier and you're more productive in work and in life."

The 2bU vending machines are another tool in DMC's ongoing initiative to promote good health and nutrition for its patients and employees. The 2bU machines are in demand nationally and DMC was fortunate to get Michigan's first. Others could be installed at DMC down the line.

Posted by, Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan, one of eight hospitals operated by the Detroit Medical Center.   

Former Detroit Lion Mike Utley Continues Giving Back to Others with Spinal Cord Injuries

Twenty years ago, as silenced fans watched in disbelief as Mike Utley was carried off the turf at the Silverdome, he gave his teammates and fans the ‘thumbs up” sign to let them know he would be back someday. Well Utley is back, and in a big way. On Monday, September 12^th the Mike Utley Foundation will host its second annual golf outing at Pine Lake Country Club in West Bloomfield Township (

3300 Pine Lake Rd.

), MI. Shot-gun start is 12:30 p.m., dinner and auction begin at 6:00 p.m.  

Proceeds from the Mike Utley Golf Outing will support scholarships for therapy at the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan (RIM) in Detroit. The one-month therapy program at RIM includes a fitness assessment and training, nutrition education and state-of-the-art biofeedback at RIM's Mike Utley Center for Human Performance. This is an innovative program designed to help people achieve maximum physical performance.

After suffering a spinal cord injury (SCI) during a Lions game in 1991, Utley has made it his personal mission to show others living with this injury that they can set and achieve personal goals. “I want people who face this new challenge to be a role model for others by example, of what needs to be done to experience life to it’s fullest.” Utley said.

For more information on the golf outing click here.