Page 25 - Barbecue News Magazine May 2022

Dana “big papa” Hillis
BBQ From Florida
lighthousepointe@ hotmail.com
Fifteen Years ago we did our first
Grant BBQ Festival and have only
missed a couple but have always
loved going back to Grant and sup-
porting Timmy Vee and his great
crew supporting a great cause.
Twenty-five years ago Timmy and
his crew started a charity event
known as the Grant BBQ Festival,
which raises money to buy toys for
kids at Christmas. We sell food
there along with many other vendors — with a big percentage of what we sell going to the big shopping spree!
I have enjoyed being a part of this event and one of the “coolest things” that keep me coming back, besides the great people we get to see every year, is something I heard Timmy and his crew say 15 years ago. They said their highlight of the whole year is to go shopping to buy these kids toys — buying toys for over 5,000 kids every year! This event is definitely a big family reunion with a great group of volunteers that make this contest run so smoothly. The music and entertainment is as good as it gets. De- spite a few storms the last couple of years — even dodging a hurricane — has not stopped this bunch from taking care of their kids!
Smoking and Poking was vending and had a good weekend. We took 2nd place both days in the People's Choice Contest with Dennis and his crew winning first place both days. I guess I will have to quit sharing so many secrets with that crew!! It was good seeing the two Cracker Family mem- bers, but I sure miss Tim and Faye. Dennis and his bunch always made sure I had coffee in the mornings and the deep fried treats are always so good. I got to spoil them with some smoked bologna sandwiches, which are everyone's favorite. We smoked a bunch of bologna stuffed with our candied jalapenos, coated with Wolfe brothers mustard sauce, and glazed with Big Papas hot garlic and onion sauce. This was a big favorite of all who tried it and we sold out — it went over well!
Ray and Brenda Parsons with the BBQ Shack crew were next to us and are always fun to work around. They have BBQ egg rolls that are a big hit and we always eat our share. Their adopted son, Keith Carey, always comes to help them and is truly a gentle giant. We had some heavy rain on Friday and Saturday that left the ground wet and soft and there were some Bigfoot footprints left behind. Keith was sleeping in the usual man- ner and snored so loud he scared Bigfoot away — however, we had the footprints to prove he had been there!
Tim with Pig In and Pig Out fought the bad weather and sold lots of ribsick- les and dawg bowls and had a good weekend. His buddy Glenn hung in there and sold all he could and the new guy from Pittsburgh lost a sign and a tent but managed to survive his first Grant BBQ Festival.
We had to make several trips to haul all our trailers and I had to run back on Tuesday and made stops at a few antique stores always full of good
MAY 2022
stuff and made a stop at Sanity Jewelry and Knives. What an awe- some store. I picked up a cool turquoise ring and an awesome knife and will definitely be back. The custom work they do is worth a trip there to see. Go to www.sani- tyjewelry.com and check them out.
We got to see Sherri and Fred, and always a bonus at the festival be- cause they truly are the nicest peo- ple ever. I have to thank our hard working crew for fighting off the wind and the rain — Tony Wolfe, Colleen and Koda, Donna Gail and
Kathy, Rich and Wendy, Matt and Lidya, Ken and Lucia, Ginger and Riley, and my pitmaster John Sweeney. John cooks with me all winter and had to head back to Michigan early. His father was not doing well and my thoughts and prayers go out to my good friend as his father passed away. My heart is heavy for my buddy and his family.
A big thank you goes to Timmy and his hard working crew for making us part of the Grant BBQ Family. Look up the Grant BBQ Festival for next year and come see us. These people deserve all the support possible. There are also some great seafood joints and Grant Valkarie is a fun place.
We are beginning to slow down a little bit with some folks now heading north. In our BBQ business it has been a rough year. Fuel is higher then its ever been, food costs are out of site, and you can't get any goods you need, (paper products, bottles, carryout boxes) and basically any goods you need to do buisness. I can't complain too much because I went to the lumberyard and bought a $42 piece of plywood. All I can do is pray to the dear Lord that our great country can get back on track.
Good luck to all my BBQ and Steak Cooking Family who are still compet- ing. Safe travels to all and remember to cook folks some BBQ — it makes them happy. We need all the "happy" we can get these days!
Grant BBQ Festival 2022
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