November 2025

11th Annual Stars, Stripes and Chow Chili Cook-Off

Our teams really brought the heat this year at the 11th annual Stars, Stripes, and Chow Chili Cook-Off! Guests were all smiles for our biggest fundraiser of the year, presented by M&T Bank, at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. As we kicked off another year of chili competition, attendees enjoyed photo fun, a petting zoo, free parking, performances from 2000 Watts, and even a special visit from our favorite baseball mascot, the Oriole Bird!

This fun-filled afternoon welcomed over 300 guests to sample nine unique chilis, each served by longtime supporters of our mission at The Baltimore Station. Competition was fierce, eight of the nine teams were returning, proving how much joy they find in this friendly battle while raising funds for our veterans. Our longest-standing team, Fuchs NA, took home the Best Theme Award with their frightfully fun Shrek-inspired costumes and decorations. Guests savored bold flavors from teams like Element Fleet, MartinFed, Society of American Military Engineers (SAME), T. Rowe Price, and WPG Financial. Newcomers Church of the Nativity made a delicious debut with their Holy White-Out Chicken Chili.

The Guest Choice for Best Chili went to M&T Bank, celebrating their fifth-year competing, while the Judge’s Choice was awarded to BGE Exelon, whose team captain, Jim, has been bringing his famous chili to The Baltimore Station for years. Can you believe this was only their second official competition?

A huge thank you to all our teams, volunteers, presenting sponsor M&T Bank, City Limits, Pizza di Joey and our other generous sponsors, judges, media partner Fox45, performers, and guests who spent their Saturday supporting the men we proudly serve. Because of everyone’s generosity, we raised critical funds that will go directly toward improving the lives of the veterans at The Baltimore Station.

Mark your calendars for Saturday, November 7, 2026, for next year’s Chili Cook-Off! If you’re interested in sponsoring a team, contact Alexandra Saraceno at aprotos@baltimorestation.org soon because slots are expected to sell out. And don’t forget to check out this year’s fun-filled photos here!

Did You Catch Our New Video?

We have been working on something special, our new Station video! We are so excited to connect with even more community members and offer an introduction into what we do here at The Baltimore Station. Check out our newest video below!

And if you haven’t done so yet, be sure to check out our social media to share, comment and like the video there!

How The Baltimore Station Celebrated Veterans Day

We hope everyone had a wonderful Veterans Day! At The Baltimore Station, this day holds special meaning as we honor the courage, sacrifice, and resilience of the men and women who have served our country. Every day, we’re proud to stand beside our veterans on their journey toward recovery, stability, and success. Thank you to everyone who took a moment to recognize and celebrate our nation’s heroes.

Throughout the week, The Baltimore Station was brimming with volunteers eager to show their gratitude for our clients’ service – and what an incredible outpouring of support it was! From care packages with handwritten cards to catered meals and homemade treats, volunteers made it a truly memorable week for our veterans.  

“This is amazing,” said a client named Robert upon receiving a care package and card from T. Rowe Price’s VALOR group. “I’m just blown away that all these people do all these things for us – I’m very thankful.”

Support came from all corners of the Baltimore area: University of Maryland Medical Center, RBC Wealth Management, Dermatology Partners, SECU, T. Rowe Price and Univest all served meals or contributed donations. Our friends at Dermatology Partners offered complimentary skin cancer screenings to kick off the week. As our clients geared up to take part in Baltimore’s Veterans Day parade, volunteers from NewDay USA took a break from serving dinner to decorate The Baltimore Station van top-to-bottom with streamers and patriotic decorations.

Students of all ages lent their time and talents to show our clients thanks throughout the week: Howard Community College provided dinner on Monday, then returned Tuesday to deliver breakfast bags. Loyola Blakefield’s baseball team brought dinner and Archbishop Spalding’s girls ice hockey team collected canned goods and toiletries. The fourth grade students from McDonogh School made posters to display throughout November, which their Upper School students hung around The Station when they came to serve dinner.

“The kids did such a great job with the posters. When I move into my new apartment, I want to bring one with me to hang up on the wall,” said a client named David. 

Neighbors from the South Baltimore community stopped by throughout the week to drop off baked goods and cards. Nai Turner and the Live or Exist Foundation brought their food truck to The Station and handed out coffee and donuts on Monday. M&T Bank welcomed the men to raise the flag at Montgomery Park, enjoying coffee, donuts and good conversations after. The 3rd annual Veterans Luncheon hosted by Sarah Caruso and her amazing group of volunteers brought singing, delicious BBQ, and an opportunity to recognize the service and sacrifice of our men. They even gave out goody bags and fleece-lined sweatshirts donated by St. Stephen’s School.

Every donation, volunteer effort, and act of kindness represents someone’s investment in our mission and more importantly, the men we proudly serve. Every volunteer who walks through the doors of The Baltimore Station is a reminder to our clients that they are not alone in their fight towards recovery. We are truly grateful for the incredible volunteers who gave our clients such an overwhelming display of support this Veterans Day!

To see more about our organization’s work with veterans, check out this special Veterans Day highlight story WBAL aired. 

To get involved yourself, email Volunteer Coordinator Pete Crispino at pcrispino@baltimorestation.org.

What's Coming Up

This Giving Tuesday, we're raising friends, not just funds!

Everyone knows a veteran and this year and we’re asking you to help us grow our network by sharing our mission with someone who knows what it means to serve. Instead of a monetary goal, our aim is to gain 100 new followers and reach the next veteran in need, one friend at a time. 

Share a post on social media using 
#RaisingFriendsForVeterans 
#TheBaltimoreStation
#GivingTuesday

Everyone who shares our post and tags us will be entered to win a Baltimore Station hoodie — a small way to show your support for the veterans we proudly serve!

Season of Giving Amazon Wishlist

Interested in supporting The Baltimore Station in a unique way this holiday season? Consider purchasing an item off our Amazon Wishlist. All items on this list go directly towards supporting the veterans in our care and ensuring the success of our mission.

Jimmy's Famous Seafood TailGoat

Looking for the perfect tailgate for the Army–Navy Game? Join the ultimate pre-game party at the Jimmy’s Famous Seafood TailGoat with special guest performer Chase Rice! Not only will you enjoy great food, drinks, and unbeatable game-day energy, but every ticket purchased with our special code TBS5 gives you $5 off each ticket AND sends $5 directly back to The Baltimore Station to support homeless veterans on their journey to stability and recovery. Kick off game day with a great time and a great cause!

Monthly Giving Program