For 38 seasons, Tom Schowalter has been a season ticket holder for the Detroit Lions—and if you know anything about Detroit, sports, or unwavering fandom, then you know how exuberant the co-owner of Miner’s Den Jewelers is right now.
Schowalter, his fellow Michigan residents, and even half the country are beyond excited that the Lions are playing in the NFC championship game against the San Francisco 49ers on Jan. 28. That puts the Lions—who hadn’t been to an NFL playoff game since 1991—within striking distance of the Super Bowl.
The Lions may be seven-point underdogs in the NFC title game, but for those, like Schowalter, who metaphorically bleed Honolulu blue—the team’s color—this season has been inspiring and worth celebrating. And celebrate Miner’s Den has done, both at its store in the Detroit suburb Royal Oak and on its social media.
“The entire city is behind this team. The entire state is behind the team,” Schowalter says. With college football matchups, like the University of Michigan versus Michigan State University, fans pick a side, but everyone is rooting for the Lions, he says. “If you weren’t a football fan before, you sure are now.”
It was hard for Schowalter to hold on to those season tickets through so many losing seasons. He thought about giving them up one or two times…or three or four. But now that he gets to take his son, nephew, and friends to the games, he’s glad he stayed with the team, especially over the past three years under head coach Dan Campbell.
“He’s got that blue-collar mentality,” Schowalter says, and that’s a point of pride for many Midwesterners. “Any independent jeweler feels the same way. You work so hard to get to where you are now. You don’t grow without a lot of hard work, long hours, and great staff. You can’t do it by yourself.”
Schowalter offers a special lion’s head ring for friends and select customers, and proudly wears it himself to every game. Originally hand-carved out of wax, the Lions Grit Gang ring has been cast and produced in sterling silver—and accented in the eyes and mouth with topaz in the “most perfect shade of Honolulu blue,” says Jackie Rose, a Miner’s Den jewelry specialist and diamond expert.
The ring has garnered a lot of attention for the store, Schowalter says, and people who see them often ask to have one made. “It’s our game swag,” he says.
Miner’s Den’s entire staff has enjoyed the Lions’ winning season—as a lifelong Michigan resident, I cannot believe I’m even writing that—and Schowalter says he is thankful for his employees and loyal customer base.
“We’re so lucky in our business to have been here for more than 50 years, and our biggest asset is our staff. We’re like family here,” Schowalter says.
His store is not the only business in Metro Detroit honoring the team: Bars, restaurants, and retailers are showing off their team spirit with blue clothing and decor and lots of Lions-related specials. Tapper’s Jewelry, which has three locations in Michigan, has promoted blue-hued jewelry.
Another local jewelry brand, Rebel Nell, offers a Detroit Lions collection of earrings, pendants, bracelets, rings, and accessories made with pieces of repurposed sideline jackets worn by players from the 1950s through the 1970s.
Most notable, says Rebel Nell CEO and cofounder Amy Peterson, is that those jackets were worn by the players in 1957, the last time the Lions won a league championship (prior to it being called the Super Bowl). “This project was important for us to tell the story of where the Lions have been while fully embracing their future,” Peterson says.
Top: Miner’s Den Jewelers and other Metro Detroit businesses are showing their team spirit during this winning season for the Detroit Lions, who are one playoff game away from the Super Bowl. (Photos courtesy of Miner’s Den)
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