What is the Worst Christmas Present?

From ugly sweaters to charcoal—yes, charcoal!—Patch users told us on Facebook about their least favorite holiday gifts.

It may indeed prove better to give than to receive, particularly if you've received a horrible holiday present. On Dec. 20, Dearborn Patch, Grosse Pointe Patch, Macomb Patch, New Baltimore-Chesterfield Patch, St. Clair Shores Patch, Shelby-Utica Patch, Trenton Patch and Wyandotte Patch used Facebook to ask people to share their worst Christmas presents. Using Storify, we've included some of the best of the worst. People responded with answers that ranged from funny to sad, and some even suggested that it's the thought that counts. After all, it's Christmas.

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Patch's Holiday Event Guide for Metro Detroit 2012, Macomb Co. and Beyond

Looking for some holiday cheer within an hour's drive? We've got lights, Santas, parades and more happing in the greater Detroit area.

We combed our Patches for some great holiday events to put together this list of holiday happenings all over Southeast Michigan. Get out and have some festive fun! Nordstrom in The Mall at Partridge Creek – Breakfast with Santa: Saturday, Dec. 15 from 8 to 10 a.m. Enjoy a family breakfast, holiday activities, face painting and a balloon bender, plus a visit with Santa. Space is limited. Tickets are $17 per person or free for two years and under. Tree Lighting Festival: Dec. 6 at the Shelby Township Municipal Hall, located at 52700 Van Dyke Ave. The Eisenhower High School choir and band will lead the community in Christmas carols.  Kids can also visit Santa's Snack Shop for hot cider and a cookie and then visit with Santa after the tree …

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Have You Checked Out Patch's 2012 Holiday Event Guide for Metro Detroit Yet?

Looking for some holiday cheer within an hour's drive of Macomb Township? We've got lights, Santas, parades and more happing in the greater Detroit area.

Santa Claus at The Somerset Collection: 2012 Schedule

The jolly old elf will arrive this Friday. Here are the days and hours he'll be available this season.

Ho, ho, ho! Santa Claus is coming to town – or, more specifically, to The Somerset Collection in Troy. Here's what you need to know about Santa's arrival and extended visit to the upscale mall this season. Santa will arrive in Troy at 6:30 p.m. this Friday, Nov. 16 in front of Somerset Collection North between J Alexander’s and Capital Grille. There will be stilt walkers, jugglers, a caroling quartet and townspeople handing out roasted almonds to guests.  At 7 p.m., the Dearborn Marching Band will begin marching and playing a holiday tune from Nordstrom’s to the center doors. They will play as Santa arrives in a horse-drawn carriage with Princess Celeste.  Once inside, the Dearborn Jazz Band will play while Santa visits with all his guests…

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Macomb Santa Claus Brings Christmas to Detroit Projects for 20th Year

Every Christmas Day, Mike Chase drives a truck filled with clothes, toys, food and necessities to the Mound Road Housing Projects in Detroit.

Editor's note: This story originally posted on Macomb Patch on Dec. 8. Today it was chosen for Huffington Post's "Greatest Person of the Day " feature. We hope this inspires other "elves" in Michigan and around the country to help Mike Chase's cause and develop similar projects of their own. Yes, Macomb, there is a Santa Claus. While he does not live in the North Pole or travel in a reindeer-drawn sleigh, this suburban Santa is as much in tune with the spirit of Christmas as the jolly old elf of holiday lore.   In his Macomb Township neighborhood, he is known as Mike Chase, but to the hundreds of men, women and children living in the Mound Road Housing Projects of Detroit, he is and always shall be Santa C. "He's a big man with a heart as…

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Jenny Whalen

10:21 am on Thursday, December 8, 2011

Easily one of the most (if not THE most) inspirational story I've had the pleasure of learning about this year. If you can spread the word by linking to this story on Facebook or Twitter, please do!   more ›

T-Minus Two Weeks to Township Tree Lighting

Check your calendars, the seventh annual Macomb Township holiday tree lighting and after glow is Nov. 30.

Santa Claus is scheduled to arrive a few weeks early this year to lend his special brand of magic to Macomb Township's seventh annual holiday tree lighting and after glow. Come snow or shine, the festivities start at 7 p.m. Nov. 30, with more than 7,500 lights set to illuminate Macomb's Town Center when Santa flips the switch. "This event  is a great way to kick off the holiday season," said Michelle Duda, Macomb Township Parks and Recreation program director. "People love tradition and this is a tradition that is here to stay, plus it’s all free and fun for the whole family." Township residents, young and old, are encouraged to bundle in their warmest winter coats, softest scarves and most festive holiday hats to greet Santa, sing a few …

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Pam

7:05 pm on Tuesday, November 15, 2011

agree...which is why I am now unsubscribing to this post. Maybe if more people made a stink about it being called a Holiday Tree instead of Christmas Tree, we would be standing on our morales and values instead of being knocked down on our *****.   more ›

Angels of Hope Preserves Christmas for Families with Cancer

The Angels of Hope Holiday Program ensures that Michigan families affected by cancer do not miss Christmas.

In the midst of chemotherapy treatments, hospital bills and the 24/7 worries associated with cancer, Christmas can be all too easily forgotten. Enter the Angels of Hope annual Holiday Program.  "It's just trying to create giving in the true spirit of Christmas," said Kelley Baetens, who sits on the Angels of Hope board of directors. "I think that this program has been so successful with our supporters because I think Christmas is a time people start to think of their own blessings and it's a good time of year to give." Based in Macomb Township, Angels of Hope is a nonprofit organization that provides financial, advocacy and support services to families whose children have been diagnosed with cancer. "I think Angels of Hope is an …

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Joe Foodie

Dragon Phoenix Chinese Restaurant: Saving Christmas Dinner

Don't let an overcooked turkey ruin your Christmas dinner! Shogun Japanese Steakhouse and Dragon Phoenix Chinese Restaurant will be open to save any Christmas dinner mishaps.

Oh, no! Aunt Mae overcooked the turkey again. A Christmas dinner of bland sides isn't going to cut it, either. It's Christmas day. Your choices are limited as it is, so why bother racking your brain? Take the family up to Hall Road and Romeo Plank to Shogun Japanese Steakhouse/Dragon Phoenix Chinese Restaurant. There are two restaurants at this location. On one side is Shogun Japanese Steakhouse, which specializes in teppanyaki style dining. I reviewed Shogun's Saint Clair Shores location recently focusing on teppanyaki and sushi. The menus are the same in both locations. The difference is in the Chinese restaurant that is attached to Shogun, the Dragon Phoenix Chinese Restaurant. With an interior like every other Chinese restaurant, the …

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Toy Drive to Help Macomb Kids Have a Christmas

Township departments are joining a toy drive that runs until Dec. 17 and will benefit 400 Macomb County children through the Macomb Charitable Foundation.

Come Christmas Day, thousands of local children will wake at sunrise and spend the remainder of the day merrily playing with mountains of colorfully wrapped presents. However, for the 400 Macomb County children who depend upon the Macomb Charitable Foundation for their Christmas, there may not be a mountain of presents awaiting them, but efforts by the Macomb Township Parks and Recreation, Fire and Water departments will ensure the presence of at least a small hill.   Past toy collections by these departments have benefited Toys for Tots. This year, at the suggestion of Parks and Recreation Program Director Michelle Duda, the collection will benefit the locally based Macomb Charitable Foundation.  "It's been my experience that the …

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