Station Stories: November 2021

STATION STORIES

November 2021

Stars, Stripes, and Chow... Chili Edition!

Are your taste buds still sizzling from our 7th annual Stars, Stripes, and Chow Chili Cook Off presented by M&T Bank?

The weather was perfect, the stomachs were rumbling, and the music was lively! Camden Yards turned out to be a great new location for this event to make it’s in-person comeback this year. Our five participating chili teams really brought the heat with their booth décor and chili recipes. It was a tough call for our judges (representing each military branch) to pick the winner of Judges Choice - The MartinFed Pit Crew, but they weren’t the only ones with a difficult choice. The audience had the chance to vote for the best decorated booth along with their favorite chili. After voting was in, the winner of both best decorated booth and crowd favorite was MMHA or should we say The Muppets with "It’s Not Easy Being Green" Chili. MartinFederal also won the award for Top Fundraiser.

Soundcheck Rock Academy provided live music from a multitude of bands representing all ages and music genres. They were a hit with our attendees!

We would like to extend a big thank you to all our teams, without whom this event would not have been possible! We would also like to thank everyone who attended, donated and volunteered for this event. Stars, Stripes and Chow raised more than $55,000 this year, with every dollar directly providing critical funding for our programs.

Mark your calendars for the 8th annual Stars, Stripes and Chow chili cook off which will take place on Saturday, November 5, 2022 at Camden Yards. We hope you’re able to join us again next year!

Purple Caravan/RavensWalk

In honor of Veterans Day this month, the Baltimore Ravens celebrated active and veteran military members with its special Salute to Service game on Sunday, November 7th.

To kick off the celebration, the Purple Caravan surprised the veterans here at The Baltimore Station on Purple Friday, November 5! WBAL made a surprise appearance to capture some of the moments.

The men and staff were overjoyed to listen to the band play a few songs for them. The caravan brought special military Ravens gear for each resident, along with smoothies from Tropical Café Smoothie. It was a fun time had by all.

The celebration continued through the weekend to Sunday where The Baltimore Station was featured on the RavensWalk before the big game. Many people stopped by our booth to learn about our mission and how they can personally help. It was an honor to be featured on the RavensWalk this year before their Salute to Service game.

Meet Vincent

This month, in honor of Veterans Day, the Mayor’s Office of Homeless Services featured one of our program graduates on their social media.

Vincent served for four years in the United States Army. Less than a year ago he was experiencing homelessness and addiction. During the pandemic, Vincent was sick with Covid-19, not once but twice. The Baltimore Station and U.S Department of Veterans Affairs were able to help get Vincent off the streets and into a warm bed while working on his recovery.

“They told me about The Baltimore Station. I was hopeless, and I was homeless. And when I got to The Baltimore Station my counselor told me… Everything will be alright.”

Through treatment, he was able to secure permanent housing and a sustainable income to support himself. Vincent is now employed fulltime by the VA. To others experiencing the same issues he was, Vincent wants to send the message that there is help out there. Not many veterans know the assistance that is available to them. It is important his story is heard so others in need may receive the help they deserve.