more I want it. 

It's a collection that started back in 1990 and features memorabilia from the good, not so good, and recently great days for the Lions.

 I lived through 0-16 [in 2008],  he said.  I live through the 2-14s and 3-13s, but that actually makes it more worthwhile. 

 A Man's Man 

Dan was born in central Tennessee and lived there at a time when there were no professional teams in the state. The Houston Oilers would not move to Tennessee until 1997.

He moved to Michigan in 1990 when he was a teenager and was quickly introduced to the Lions by family friend Gary Wayne Slatton. The two immediately bonded.

 He was amazing,  Foster said.  He was a veteran. He did two tours in Vietnam. 

 He was tough as nails, but he was a great - for me - he was a great mentor,  he said.  He was a great father figure. 

The two men religiously watched Lions games together for years. As the collection grew into a man cave, Sundays in the Fall were all about the Lions.

 Gary would smoke and we would watch games at his place, I could barely see the screen by the 4th quarter with all the smoke in the air,  he said.

Unfortunately, Gary passed away in 2025. The last game the Dan and Gary watched together was the 2024 NFC Championship Game between the Lions and San Francisco 49ers.

Now, he's selling nearly all of his collection.

 After he passed away was when I just kind of decided,  he said.  I wasn't texting or calling or watching games with him anymore and it just had a different feel.

 As long as it goes to a Lions fan,  he said.  I think that's what I've been holding out for the last probably 6 months. 

He is keeping a few things. His 14-year-old daughter will have her pick of what she wants to keep and Dan's keeping everything he got from his favorite player: former Lions wide receiver Johnnie Morton.

The two made an unlikely connection on Facebook after Morton spotted his No. 87 jersey in the basement in a viral video and it quickly grew into a yearslong friendship.

 My favorite thing down here is his jersey that he signed for me,  he said.  And his picture he sent for me. 

 He told me I'm absolutely forbidden from selling anything that he signed for me,  he said.

Morton invited Foster to a Lions game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2016.

Foster got to hang out in a suite with Morton and a bunch of Lions legends, including Hall of Famer Lem Barney - a picture of which sits in the collection.

 It was so cool getting to hear them tell old stories,  Foster said.  Lem also told me to say  Love' instead of  Cheese' when you take pictures, because that way, you'll always remember to smile. 

Dan says that he plans on selling all of this before the end of the month and has gotten bids sent to him on social media for more than $6,000.

For Dan, the material things don't mean nearly as much as the connections he's made with lions' fans and players over the last 36 years. He owns a security company and travels all over the country and encounters Lions fans everywhere.

Those are the memories what he will cherish the most.

 I know people in Vegas that are Lions fans,  he said.  I know people in Tennessee that are Lions fans. 

 There's a Lions fan in every state, and honestly, just from social media and people seeing my Lions' den,  he said,  That's my favorite thing.