On the 20th of May, after leaving the Warrior’s Weekend Field of Honor in Victoria, over 250 of America’s heroes will arrive in Port O’Connor for a weekend they will not soon forget. Most of these brave men and women have been wounded in the War on Terror and this is the best opportunity most of us will have to put into action that often used phrase, “We Support Our Troops.”
The Warrior’s Weekend Field of Honor in Victoria will be dedicated at 3:00 p.m. at Faith Family Church inside the sanctuary where the heroes will attend. For those of you not familiar with the Field of Honor, there will be about 1,500 American flags posted in the field next to the church on Sam Houston Drive and Mockingbird in Victoria and each flag will have the name of a veteran attached to it. Our supporters sponsor these flags for $40 and many of our area school children have been involved for many months to make this happen. This participation is helping to light a flame of patriotism in them that may grow throughout their lives.
After the trek down to Port O’Connor led by Sheriff B.B. Browning through Calhoun County, the heroes will be shown their lodging and then taken to the POC Community Center for a great fish fry with all fish caught and cleaned by our crew led by Russell Hofer and Kelly Parks. We will also offer them 3,000 jalapeños stuffed with shrimp, French fries, hush puppies, cole slaw and chicken wings by Buffalo Wild Wings of Victoria. After that, they will be offered a choice of a game of Texas Hold ‘Em or be allowed to go fishing that evening at The Sanctuary until midnight.
On Saturday morning, the 21st, the heroes will be served breakfast prepared by Rev. Erny McDonough and the good folks of Fisherman’s Chapel, while we await the arrival of the 100 or so heroes plus family members from Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) in San Antonio. When those buses arrive we’ll all go down to Froggies’ Bait Dock at the same time. It is quite a sight to see. Please try to be there to welcome our heroes to Port O’Connor and South Texas. Try to get there by 8:00 or so to get a good seat and bring a chair to await the arrival of the heroes around 9:00 – 9:30.
On Saturday morning, there will be around 175 – 200 boats awaiting the arrival of the heroes along with a 41’ Coast Guard Cutter, a disc jockey playing patriotic music, a vintage aircraft flyover, Academy Sports and Outdoors will be handing out bottled water; cheerleaders doing their thing, and the Warrior’s Weekend store will be open—all right there at Froggies’ Boat Dock. What a sight! You may park at the Community Center and shuttle buses will take you to and from the boat dock. By the way, after the heroes go fishing, go to the U.S. Coast Guard station for their open house and then come to the Community Center. These guys and gals are heroes, too and would like to see you down there.
After the heroes return from fishing with the last boat in at 3:30 p.m., they will freshen up and then attend a huge barbeque dinner in their honor back at the Community Center. Awards will be given out; a band composed of wounded heroes will play; and afterwards, the heroes can either go fishing or play Texas Hold ‘Em again. Then, on Sunday morning after breakfast, the heroes will board their buses for their return trip home. They should be exhausted by this time.
We will hit our target goal of over 300 heroes in Port O’Connor this year and it takes a huge team effort to pull this off. Warrior’s Weekend is getting great cooperation from folks all around the area and that is what it takes to put on an event like this. We believe it to be the largest in the country, right here in Port O’Connor, Texas. Just our Field of Honor has jumped from around 650 flags in 2010 to around 1,500 by the time all is said and done this year.
Warrior’s Weekend would like to take this opportunity to thank the good folks of Calhoun County for their assistance. Although you hate to start naming names as you know you’ll leave someone out, we have to acknowledge the County Commissioners Court, especially Kenny Finster, Judge Nancy Pomykal, Sheriff B.B. Browning and his staff, the good folks at Tigrett Real Estate for their help with lodging including Bill and Valerie and the whole gang, the group at Froggies’ including Connie & Clyde Rowney, the Port O’Connor Service Club, Leah Griffin and the POC Chamber of Commerce, the Lions Club, certainly the Dolphin Talk, 10th Street Lodge, The Lodge of Port O’Connor, The Inn at Clarks, Captains Quarters in both POC and Seadrift, Falcon Point Lodge, Speedy Stop, the POC Volunteer Fire Department, The Tarpon Inn, St. Christopher’s Suites, Calhoun County ISD, especially Lydia Strakos and her crew, Kathy Yearwood and Grady Jean Clark for decorating the Community Center, Calhoun County Heritage Center and all of the good folks of Port O’Connor, who have so graciously opened their homes to Warrior’s Weekend to make this event happen.
As you read this, we may still be needing boats to take the heroes fishing on the 21st and if you feel so inclined, contact either myself or Kelly Parks by email: Kelly-Parks@att.net and he’ll get you on the list, or go by and see Connie at Froggies’ and she’ll sign you up.
Again, try to be at Froggies’ on Saturday morning, May 21st, to greet the heroes—see their faces light up—and stay for as much as you can. It’s worth it to go to the Community Center to view the wonderful sand sculpture Gloria Fric, aka, “The Dragon Lady” and her friends create for our heroes. Please decorate your homes and business in patriotic colors and give a hug and/or kiss to someone who has put their life on the line for our freedom.
One more thing, on June 18th, international recording star, Kevin Fowler will be the headliner for Warrior’s Weekend Slam & Jam Fishing Tournament in support of Warrior’s Weekend. Go to the website, www.slamandjam.net or check with Connie at Froggies’. What a tournament and party that should be!
See you at Froggies’ on Saturday, May 21st.
Ron Kocian, President Warrior’s Weekend
361-550-0187 ron_kocian@hotmail.com
