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**EVENT TO KICK OFF ENSHRINEMENT WEEKEND** The annual Enshrinees’ Gold Jacket Dinner will be held on Thursday night, Aug. 6 at the Canton Civic Center and kick off the 2015 Enshrinement Weekend festivities. The event, where members of the new class of enshrinees receive their coveted Hall of Fame Gold Jacket, was traditionally held on Friday, the eve of the Enshrinement ceremony. A new public event that will now take place on Friday, Aug. 7 will be announced in coming days. The Class of 2015 – Jerome Bettis, Tim Brown, Charles Haley, Bill Polian, Junior Seau, Will Shields, Mick Tingelhoff, and Ron Wolf – will be formally enshrined into the Hall of Fame on Saturday, Aug. 8. For the second straight year, the Enshrinees’ Gold Jacket Dinner will be televised nationally by NFL Network. This year’s show will be expanded from 60 to 90 minutes. Each summer for the past 51 years, the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce has partnered with the Pro Football Hall of Fame to produce an exciting Enshrinement Festival that today includes 23 events enjoyed by a total audience of more than 700,000 fans. Dennis P. Saunier, President & CEO of the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce commented, “We are so delighted that the Enshrinees’ Gold Jacket Dinner has become such an important event of the Enshrinement celebration. Featuring the event on primetime television gives the community and the Hall of Fame much more national exposure and is a great way to welcome the Class of 2015 and all of the Gold Jackets (living Hall of Famers) to Canton.” In previous years the newest Class of Enshrinees and Gold Jackets would arrive in Canton on Thursday and attend a private reception at the Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame Gold Jacket, created by Haggar®, is one of three icons that represent an individual’s enshrinement into the Hall of Fame. The others include the bronzed bust that will be unveiled by the enshrinee and his presenter during the Saturday Enshrinement and the Hall of Fame Ring of Excellence that is given to the Hall of Famer at his home stadium during the upcoming season. Tickets to the Enshrinees’ Gold Jacket Dinner may be purchased through the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce by contacting Ticket Manager Kim Miller at 330-458-2048 or kimm@cantonchamber.org. All available tickets to the 2015 NFL/Hall of Fame Game between the Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers have sold out. However, fans can still purchase individual Enshrinement tickets and Ticket Packages that include Enshrinement, Game, and Enshrinees’ Gold Jacket Dinner tickets. Tickets and packages are available online at ProFootballHOF.com/tickets or by calling 1-844-4HOFTIX. The Enshrinement Festival offers a variety of diverse events, both free and ticketed, for fans of all ages and interests to enjoy. For the full lineup of Enshrinement Festival events, visit the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival website at Profootballhoffestival.com/events. Ticket information for these events is also available online or by calling 1-800-533-4302. Media Contacts: Pete Fierle, Vice President of Communications & Special Assistant to the President Pro Football Hall of Fame Pete.Fierle@ProFootballHOF.com; 330-588-3622 Collyn Floyd, Director of Marketing and Public Relations Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce collynf@cantonchamber.org; 330-458-2071