Tailgate With A Hero 2016 Main Event

October 1, 2016

MIchael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center

Click HEREfor Game Day Photos!

Tailgaters,

We are going to call the 8th Annual TGWAH a success! The weather was incredible (maybe a little warm by the time we were leaving) and we had several TGWAH firsts:

- The first dance party break out
- The first tank/smoker on-site – it actually was mobile and controlled by remote control
- The first repurposed ambulance on-site – tailgating is serious stuff
- The first time we had over 200 volunteers on-site for any event

A few items of note:

1. If you have any expense receipts for reimbursement, please get those to Dan Wingerson or me asap. Be sure you put your name on the receipt.

2. If you have some good pictures from Saturday please send those to Dan at dan@wingernet.com. We will get those up on http://www.tailgatewithahero.org/ in a day or two or three.

3. I heard several very complimentary comments on the music – thank you Patrick and Esther Flores, and the St. Timothy’s Band of Brothers.

4. I’m not sure of our expenses to date yet. We spent a little under $4,000 at Restaurant Depot and we bought 144 caps – we have a few left. I will recap expenses when we get all the numbers but we should have plenty of funding remaining.

5. A special shout-out to two new cooking teams this year – Texans Tailgate Response Unit/First United Methodist of Sugar Land (Mark Morales), and Warpig BBQ Team (Dennis Butterworth). They are obviously professional tailgaters and have industrial strength tailgate gear. We hope you will join us again.

6. We are scheduled to cook lunch for the residents at DeGeorge at Union Station on Saturday December 3rd. I believe that St. Tim’s Band of Brothers have quite a few ribs that were not cooked on Saturday and I have three cases of beans at my house so half the menu is set. The DeGeorge is literally in the shadow of Minute Maid Park and houses about 100 residents. On our previous trips to DeGeorge we have had at least an equal number of people in need walk up for a meal from the street so we are cooking for at least 200. More on that event to follow in future emails.

7. We will try to schedule a trip to Midtown Terrace for early next year – maybe on the football conference game weekend. Midtown houses about 600 veterans escaping homelessness. It would be best to have at least two cooking teams for Midtown – three would be even better.

8. The VA told me we are on the schedule for the 9th Annual TGWAH at DeBakey on Saturday October 7, 2017. Remember we are always at DeBakey on the first Saturday in October. If you know that your organization is planning to be at DeBakey next year let me know when you can and I will be sure to get you listed on the City proclamation – we have to request that months in advance.

So a big thanks to all of you for a great kick-off to our season. More to follow on DeGeorge.

Ralph Wissel

Click HERE to download the flyer.