2009 Great Peppers Meeting, Midland
To the Members of the Black Gold Pod and your volunteers
Congratulations on a job well done!!.....Hotel was great, Hospitality suites were up, running and fully stocked and of course very comfortable. The Yucca Theater was a new twist and the entertainment on Friday night was ... ENTERTAINING! We are still laughing. and taking small cautious steps. A big thanks to the Odessa Gang that cooked up a "Great Texas Meal."
As for the meeting, we heard old items, new issues and it left us with a lot to think about as how to move CASI forward to bigger and better times. With the Board election there is always the excitement for the new members and disappointment for others. Still, being an all volunteer organization means we get to all move forward at the same pay level, so let's do it and keep the faith of our motto Chili, Charity and Fun.
Again, a big thanks to our hosts. We look forward to see everyone at TICC.
From Big John and Blu Daniels:
As announced at GPM in Midland, Rose City Pod, Tyler, is proud to sponsor the goody bags for the Terlingua School students again this year. We are asking that everyone bring their excess goody bag items received over the past year from local cookoffs. We all get them and even pay early in order to get one, but we can only have so many pens, pencils, pads of paper etc.....so bring all that and the keychains, koozies, caps, t-shirts, rulers, all the stuff you don't want to throw away but don't need. They do not allow any item with a beer or liquor logo, understandably, but we gave out lots of military items, some backpacks, CD holders, no telling what all you get in them wonderful "cooks goody bags". And the Terlingua students are so appreciative of this gift. We send them back for every student with the high school kids that come out to entertain us on Friday morning....and that's when I am able to reclaim all kinds of room in our bus! Kubota Tractor is giving us all the bags to stuff. Last year we had 113 bags and they had 118 students, so we will be prepared with the bags, just need the stuff to put in them. Please do not bring used items that don't even belong in a garage sale!
Bring your items to Big John and Blu's big white bus, usually parked on the main road, next to the last sponsor camp space across from the Showmanship area. We will be assembling these on Thursday afternoon/evening so Friday afternoon will be too late. We also like to include all those little bottles of shampoo, conditioner, mouthwash, body lotion you collect at the hotels. Thank you all so much for a great time at GPM, an excellent meeting and we'll see ya at the Ranch.
If you are not coming to Terlingua, please send your stuff with someone who is, if they would be willing to haul it for you. Also, Big John and Blu will be at the following cookoffs if you can bring or send to them - Sept. 26, Jacksonville; Oct. 3-4, Hallsville; Oct. 10, Chandler; and Oct. 24, Tyler Elks Lodge.
Thanks for helping get the word out!
From Ron Barnes:
Come on out Saturday, September 19th, to the Dallas Heritage Village for their 1st Ever Chili Cookoff. It is being held at Old City Park in Dallas. The actual address is 1515 S. Harwood (near the Dallas Farmers Market). If you are coming from the west, take the Lamar/Griffin exit off of I-30 and follow feeder road to the first light (Harwood). Then follow Harwood south until you reach Beaumont. Turn right on Beaumont and follow to Ervay. Turn right on Ervay and look for the delivery gate (there will be someone there to guide you). You will have to come in, unload your chili gear, then leave the area and park in the main parking lot. You will be allowed to return after the cookoff to load back up. Trust me; it will be worth the extra effort necessary. They also have a large indoor pavilion (climate-controlled) for registration and judging.
Dallas Heritage Village is a circa 1890 – 1910 village with many original buildings and artifacts from that era. There will also be a wild-west shootout on Main Street in the village! If you are any kind of history buff, or just want to see what things were like back in the day, this is the chance. It truly is an interesting place to see.
This is a grind-only event with a $20 entry and a 1:00 p.m. turn-in. Any questions can be directed to Michelle Davis at mdavis@dallasheritagevillage.org or me (Ron Barnes) at Ratchili@tx.rr.com. If you are having trouble the day of the event, call my cell at 817-691-2325. Looking forward to seeing you there!
From Mason Dixon Pod:
At the Great Pepper's Meeting we voted to have 3 New State Open Championships. Those Championships are New Mexico Men's Championship, New Mexico Women's Championship, and San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico State Championship. San Miguel will be an International CCO!
The 2010 Great Pepper's Meeting will be held in Salado, TX at the StageCoach Inn. You can make your reservations by calling 254 947 5111 or 1-800 732 8994. Donna Conrad and the citizens from Salado gave a good presentation. It's going to be the "Place to be" next September!
Kansas requested to become a 12 point State. This is the first year with a Pod in Kansas! You Guys are doing GREAT! They will be having the Annual State Open Championship as well as a Men's and Women's Championship.
That's enough for today. The weather here is looking a lot like Fall. This makes me think it is really time to hit the road and go cook Chili!
