Camp and Brew - Final Chapter
or Why Things are Changing
January 17, 2011
Since its very austere beginnings in 2002, Camp and Brew
has come to represent (we hope) the very best of what camping and entertaining
can be in the Coke Lot for The Indy
500. Our goals were simple, have a good time, be responsible campers, and be
hosts to fans and friends from all over. As stated many times before, we truly
had no idea where it would go and what it might come to represent to so many
friends over the years.
Likewise, we had no idea if or when it might come to an end. This, our tenth
year of C&B, will be our last as we take a hiatus of undetermined length and
evaluate our future. With just one tenth the time that IMS has been around, we
are grateful for all the friends that we’ve made and have helped our event grown
to something that we could never have imagined.
We remain fans of THE 500 and
will most certainly be in Indy in 2012, albeit camping and relaxing in a
different location. The logistics and effort that are required by C&B have grown
to be something that we feel we need to take a break from.
Please note: Unlike the 2007 April Fools joke we so successfully pulled off,
this is not a joke. We were flattered and surprised by the reaction to that
little joke, but as far as April Fools jokes go, we got a lot of people to fall
for it.
Another aspect that we could not have foreseen was the integral part we would
play in Brian's Wish
charity fund raising. Since the first year, when an impromptu donation jar
started after the death of Brian Hall on Carburetion Day, we have incorporated
Brian’s Wish fundraising
as a significant part of C&B. We have always been very happy to be associated
personally with Brian’s parents, Many Ann and Jim. Sadly, this year, Jim Hall
passed away after a very tough battle with cancer. He will be missed and we wish
his family the best.
Your generosity in these past 9 years have raised over $31,900 in memory
and support of a young man who died of ALS. None of the C&B principals met him,
but we feel privileged to have carried his “wish” forward.
If you’ve been one of the lurkers who haven’t ventured past the wire to visit us
we sincerely hope that you’ll join us for our final party. If you’ve ever been
to C&B, we hope that you’ll make a special effort to join us for one last time
and make this the biggest party ever!
In the past, we’ve never set a goal for
Brian’s Wish donations,
but we really hope you will be extra generous this year so that we can approach
a lifetime total of $40,000. (For the math challenged, that would mean we need
to raise $8,100 this year, which is a 69% increase over last year’s donations.)
With your help, we believe it can be done!
We are in the process of compiling a year by year highlight list which we plan
to publish by the end of March. If you can think of a special highlight, please
take a minute to use the
Contact Us link and share it with us.
As always we are accepting donation and sponsorship opportunities for this
year’s event. We’re working hard to make this the biggest and best party in our
10 year history! Feel free to use the
Donate link above or
Contact Us for further
information.
--TommyD, GlennH, JimmyD
along with Scott, Sue, Andy, Mike, Roach and a cast of thousands
