Hey, 19 - Country First Challenge

Free gas for health care workers. Featured on CBS. Watch the movie.

Nurses and other health care workers were treated to free gas on Saturday in Aurora. Tailgate Tavern & Grill teamed up with Costco and Office Depot/OfficeMax for the event.

“It’s really amazing. It’s great to feel the support from the community. Going to work everyday is scary facing the unknown. It’s very much appreciated. It’s very heartwarming,” said one health care worker.

Organizers say the event was dedicated to the memory of Aurora veterans who were killed in action in the Iraqi and Afgh . . . Read on »

On the 3rd and 4th of July (at Tailgate) there will be over one thousand Greeting and Christmas cards to fill out, Wes and Tony personally deliver over 10,000 cards (filled out by Coloradans) to our active duty military personnel during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays at DIA. Additionally, they provide free rides and free meals for our returning brave men and women.

New t-shirts available at Tailgate in Parker, CO - "Paid For", honoring our fallen vets.

Greetings! Today's leg of the Hey19 Country First Challenge encourages everyone to buy/wear made in America products. The longest journey begins with the first step.......if there was ever a time to stand up for our country and bring jobs back to America that time is now! Support small local businesses and please by made in America products.......Hey19 Country First Challenge ends next Wednesday June 10th and we hope to see you all at the Tailgate.

T-shirts can be purchased at Tailgate in Parker.

Tailgate Tavern and Grill
19552 E. Mainstreet
Parker, CO 80138
303-841-7179

You can create your own, or follow us and lend a hand. Either way, it enriches our community.

The Challenge

Day 1 (May 23) 8am - 10am - Trash Pick Up (O’Brien’s Park - Parker)

Day 2 (May 24) 9am - 11am - Let Them Eat Cake (Tailgate, Parker), take some cake to someone to celebrate their birthday month.

Day 3 (May 25) 8am - 10am - Ring the Bell - Honoring Coloradans lost to Covid 19 (Mainstreet Parker)

Day 4 (May 26) When Convenient - Donate your Blood to the nearest Blood Bank

Day 5 (May 27) Business Ho . . . Read on »

Today I participated in a Teacher Parade with colleagues! Was so much fun and emotional. I loved it and I know the parents and students did too. Was amazing!!

WATCH NOW

Congrats to our 2020 High School Grads from Tailgate Tavern and Grill.

SSGT Brian Joiner served with the US Air Force in the Persian Gulf. "Loyal to country and friends."

Wilbur was a Colonel in the Army. He served in Vietnam.

Roy's grandmother is Danny Dietz's great grandmother. Elizabeth Dietz is resting at Riverside Cemetery in Denver. I  will be visiting Elizabeth next week . . . Judy's maiden name is Dietz.

US Marine Corp. Served in the Persian Gulf. Killed in action in Iraq, November 8, 2005. He was nineteen years old. Awarded the Purple Heart.

Jeremy Paul Tamburello joined the Marines after graduating from high school in 2004. He wanted to further his education, his father said. He was assigned to the 1st Light Armor Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, California. Tamburello’s parents . . . Read on »

Today I offered our trampoline to a young family looking to buy one.  We have been very blessed over the years and our girls are grown. So I offered it for free for them.

So many smiles when they came to pick it up. I was talking to the young girl, maybe 6-7 years old, she was very sweet and fun to talk to.  It was refreshing talking with her and seeing how she sees things and thinks in such an innocent way.  I really miss these types of conversations. 

I told her mom that I have a beautiful purple bed set and room decor, that my daughter had parted with. However, I wasn't r . . . Read on »

Today I was honored to go to Fort Logan with Tony and Jack.

Tony goes around to different tombstones including my girl's grandfather and puts a flower a flag and a poster that says thank you for your service. A picture is taken and then sent to the families so they know their loved ones are never forgotten. This made my heart smile so Big thank you so much for letting me be part of this.❤

#Hey19cfc #loveall #lovewins ❤

Danny Dietz, Jr. was a Navy Seal - Gunner's Mate 2nd Class. He served in Afghanistan where he was killed in action. Danny was the recipient of the Navy Cross, Silver Star and Purple Heart. He was twenty-five years old.

Today we gave. We gave, we hurt, we mourned. Families with little, begging for hope. We gave, we mourned we hurt. They give everything with nothing in return. People you pass by without a second thought. The ones who keep you going that you have now lost. 
we give, we hurt, we mourn. 

Giving to those in need is required for those who gave us a need. 
Day one. The people on the street, we gave for hope they will recover. Tomorrow we clean. 

We are bringing cakes donated by Costco to Parker and Aurora PD for any officer's celebrating birthdays in May.

I saw an acquaintance today for the first time in a while. He is a homeless man who is frequently around a restaurant I like. In the acknowledgments for my novel, Purple Hearted Man, I wrote about him. It seems appropriate to post that here.

I need to thank the kids at Helping The Homeless Colorado (helpingthehomelessco.org), a non-profit organization in Colorado. I conceived the idea for this book in at the end of 2018 and early 2019 while I was writing Poet Of The Moon. Purple wouldn't leave me alone. He pestered me day and night. So, I did something . . . Read on »

I never served in the military. One of my brothers was Special Forces and then worked for Homeland Security. My father served stateside before I was born. My uncle was in the first ever Green Beret team in Korea. I’ve been around people who served their country but I wouldn’t pretend to understand what that meant to them. I am an artist and writer and I created this website for Hey, 19 - Country First Challenge. It was my first challenge—all volunteered—and has taken several days. That’s OK. It was worth it.

My brother and I were always different. He is about a year younger than I a . . . Read on »