Galveston Island First Responders - April 30, 2022
Tailgaters,
The first ever tailgate on Galveston Island and the first ever tailgate for first responders last Saturday went well. We would like to have had more first responders and more people present, but if we do this again on the island (OTI) we will work on that. Once the word got out to local residents and businesses on what we were doing, the response was overwhelming. Here are some wrap up comments and info:
- It’s hard to say exactly how many meals we served. We plated and served around 200 meals at the park for first responders and others, but we also sent several pans of food off to some fire stations OTI on Saturday, and then I took about five gallons of zip-locks of sausage to the Jamaica Beach Fire Station and put it in their freezer on Sunday. There was about a pan and a half of brisket plus sausage and some hamburgers left that Ray took to his church in Jamaica Beach the next day – see next item below.
- This was not intended to be a fund raiser but we received $1,773 in cash donations in total for food at the park, from Ray’s church (Seaside Baptist) and from some local businesses. That is far more than I ever expected we would see from this event and includes five $100 bills from people who wouldn’t take any change. Many of the first responders and veterans present insisted on making a donation even though we didn’t want them to. This doesn’t cover all expenses for this event, but that was never the intent. We are still collecting receipts but we spent about $500 on briskets, about $2,000 at Restaurant Depot for other supplies (like the sausage, chicken and cole slaw fixings, plates, etc.), and that doesn’t include the water bottles, cookies and all other expenses. So we probably have over $3,000 in total expenses. So receiving $1,773 in cash donations makes a big dent in those expenses. I don’t know exactly where this will leave us on funding yet but I think there will be plenty left to fund the next event – we haven’t scheduled anything else yet.
- I especially want to
thank Mr. Devin Bily for hauling his huge trailer mounter smoker/grill all
the way across Houston in Friday rush hour traffic down to Jamaica Beach
and basically staying up all night Friday to be sure the briskets were
perfect, and the chicken and sausage got on and off the pit on time.
A few of us got up every three hours to “help” Devin overnight but I’m not
sure we were much help. Devin is the owner of Bayou City Coatings and
they powder coat all sorts of industrial, commercial and even residential
applications. He also has an interest in The Backyard Grill on West
Road at Jones so be sure to support those if you can. This tailgate
would not have happened without Devin and all his hard work and I heard
nothing but good comments on the BBQ.
- I also want to thank Mr. Rene Esparza and Goya Foods for donating all the beans as they have many times for us (we have some left over), Esther and Patrick Flores and their company Tax Tech for the donation that funded this entire event and more, the Jamaica Beach Fire Department for letting us use their tables and chairs, Seleste Esparza and Don Whisman for handling all the water bottles and ice, John and Jennifer Peck and their girls for handling dessert plus other work, my neighbors in Jamaica Beach, and all of the TGWAH old-timers who turned out once again. I’m not going to try to list everyone individually because I know I would leave someone out. You know who you are.
- I want to mention that Spoony and Billy’s To Go Daiquiris and Way West Grill in Jamaica Beach both supported us strongly. I have a story about a few of our volunteers and the Daiquiri place but that is for another time (I highly recommend the pina colada).
- I have asked my first responder contacts for their input on how we might make this tailgate better and bigger if we do it again and I look forward to receiving their comments. And if any of you have suggestions along those lines, we will listen. We are figuring this out as we go.
- Nothing else is on the schedule at present and we may take the summer off and think about doing something when the weather cools off. Is it really supposed to be 97^ this weekend?
