At Upper Deck we do a lot to help get cards in the hands of kids and get them interested in the hobby. At the 2019 National Sports Collectors Convention we donated some of our booth space to our friends at Kidority Kards who provide cards to kids and talk to them about the fun of the hobby.

We hosted a great event on the Mike Berkus Main Stage on Saturday where youngsters competed in a collation contest.

We gave away over 100 prizes through raffles over the 2019 National with many going to kids as well. It’s great to see their faces light up when they win!

We preach to our staff to treat kids like gold, especially at events, because they are the future. And with that in mind, something interesting happened at the show quite by chance.

Jeff Dotseth, Upper Deck’s Customer Care Supervisor, was on his way to the National when he decided to stop in the hotel gift shop and grab a drink. A young collector approached him and asked him if he worked for the company.

“He noticed my Upper Deck shirt and we started talking,” said Dotseth. “He started rattling off all his favorite Upper Deck cards, he is a really sharp young man. He actually gave some of his St. Louis Blues cards to a couple younger kids who didn’t get any at the show. Once he told me that, I told him to come see me at our corporate booth. When we see kindness in the hobby, especially with kids, we like to reward that.”

Brandon, who is 13-years-old, met Dotseth at the booth and Jeff had put together a nice package for him. He was all smiles and started talking to another collector. That’s when his mother shared something with Jeff. They are from Parkland, Florida and Brandon’s middle school and Douglas High share a campus. Brandon was not in the same building where the shooting was, but their community was seriously affected by the tragedy there. She brought him to the show because he loves cards and Jeff had helped make the show a little more memorable for him. His smile tells that story from the booth!

It’s amazing the positive effect trading cards can have on people, but at the end of the day, they provide a nice distraction from daily stress and problems. You can get lost in them and that’s a nice thing when there can be so much ugliness in the world at times. Jeff found out some of Brandon’s favorite team and he will be sending him an Upper Deck Random Acts of Kindness package to keep the friendship going.