Brown wins Salvation Army Donation Contest at Buzz Fest
By: Jim Eichenhofer, Hornets.com
December 8, 2008
Fans who attended Saturday’s pregame Buzz Fest party were greeted by a familiar holiday scene: a pair of volunteers ringing bells and asking for donations to the Salvation Army. Only this time, the two volunteers were a bit taller than usual, wearing blue New Orleans Hornets warmup uniforms, and looked a lot like Hornets reserves Devin Brown and Ryan Bowen.
The 6-foot-5 Brown and the 6-9 Bowen stood outside the New Orleans Arena on Saturday to collect donations, in a joint effort between the Hornets and the Salvation Army. During a 15-minute period, the players competed to see which man could obtain the largest contributions from Hornets fans.
A total of $611 was raised by the players during their visit to Buzz Fest. Brown earned the victory over his fellow reserve by collecting slightly more money. He later joked that he believed he was the favorite in the donations duel vs. Bowen.
“You know, Ryan was going up against a heavyweight tonight,” Brown said, laughing. “So it was kind of unfair for him. But it was great to be able to do that.”
Brown and Bowen each received several startled looks from incredulous fans who didn’t expect to see Hornets players outside the arena roughly 90 minutes before tip-off of the Hornets-Grizzlies game.
“The fans were definitely surprised, but at the same time, they were happy to see us out there,” Brown said. “It was fun interacting with the fans and taking pictures with everyone. The fans were excited and that got us fired us to play this game. That was the first time I’ve gotten to visit (Buzz Fest), because we’re always inside getting ready for the game, but that’s a great thing the team does, especially with people being able to hear the live music, and getting to play basketball (on Girod Street). You can tell people really enjoy themselves.”
“It was great to get to experience what goes on before the game,” said Bowen, gracious in defeat. “I’ve seen (Buzz Fest from afar) while driving in to the game, but this was the first time I’ve been able to participate in it. It was a lot of fun.”
By: Jim Eichenhofer, Hornets.com
December 8, 2008
 
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The 6-foot-5 Brown and the 6-9 Bowen stood outside the New Orleans Arena on Saturday to collect donations, in a joint effort between the Hornets and the Salvation Army. During a 15-minute period, the players competed to see which man could obtain the largest contributions from Hornets fans.
A total of $611 was raised by the players during their visit to Buzz Fest. Brown earned the victory over his fellow reserve by collecting slightly more money. He later joked that he believed he was the favorite in the donations duel vs. Bowen.
“You know, Ryan was going up against a heavyweight tonight,” Brown said, laughing. “So it was kind of unfair for him. But it was great to be able to do that.”
Brown and Bowen each received several startled looks from incredulous fans who didn’t expect to see Hornets players outside the arena roughly 90 minutes before tip-off of the Hornets-Grizzlies game.
“The fans were definitely surprised, but at the same time, they were happy to see us out there,” Brown said. “It was fun interacting with the fans and taking pictures with everyone. The fans were excited and that got us fired us to play this game. That was the first time I’ve gotten to visit (Buzz Fest), because we’re always inside getting ready for the game, but that’s a great thing the team does, especially with people being able to hear the live music, and getting to play basketball (on Girod Street). You can tell people really enjoy themselves.”
“It was great to get to experience what goes on before the game,” said Bowen, gracious in defeat. “I’ve seen (Buzz Fest from afar) while driving in to the game, but this was the first time I’ve been able to participate in it. It was a lot of fun.”
