29th District’s Collins redirects campaign fundraiser to ‘Harvey’ victims

Scenes from 29th District State Delegate Chris Collins quick shift of focus from electoral politics to disaster relief – Del. Collins, left, with friends on the front porch of Front Royal’s Virginia Beer Museum. Photos/Roger Bianchini

On August 31, 29^th District State Delegate Chris Collins held a fundraising event in Front Royal for victims of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Harvey.  As explained in a press release from Collins office the previous day, a re-election campaign event had already been planned and was quickly morphed into something different.

“In lieu of the Collins for Delegate Beer & BBQ campaign fundraiser scheduled for Thursday evening, August 31, 2017, Delegate Chris Collins and David Downs, owner of the Virginia Beer Museum, will be hosting a Hurricane Harvey Relief event from 6-9 p.m. at the Virginia Beer Museum in Front Royal, VA.  One hundred percent of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the American Red Cross to support their efforts in Texas and the surrounding region most affected by Hurricane Harvey,” Collins press release stated.  At the event, Collins elaborated on how the change came about.

“This event had been scheduled for about a month, and originally the price was going to cover the cost of the food, the beer and a small donation to the campaign.  And then David called me up earlier this week and said, ‘I’ll donate the keg and all the beverages, why don’t we just make this a straight-up event for the hurricane?’

“And I agreed because I was thinking why don’t we find a way to give back to the community down in Texas.  So, this was a good opportunity to take advantage of something that was already scheduled, it was already planned, we already had the caterer set up.”

Collins observed in the announcement of the shift of focus, “Our brothers and sisters in Texas need our help.  Their lives and properties have been devastated by Hurricane Harvey, and I want to do what I can to help.”

We noted that a barbeque fundraiser seemed appropriate for Texas relief.

“Exactly, it’s a good Texas combo, so it was an easy fit,” Collins agreed of a Texas food tradition.

Former downtown Front Royal eatery proprietors Trevor and Lorena Lipton of the late and lamented six-night-a-week music venue the Lucky Star Lounge were sighted.  Trevor confirmed that he was available to cater on call for such events at the Virginia Beer Museum.

Caught with his server’s apron off, Downes agreed that the time was right for a quick shift of focus. “Chris and I both felt like we needed to pivot the focus of the event from a campaign fundraiser to supporting the victims of Hurricane Harvey.  In times like this, we must all pull together to help our fellow Americans in need.”

Tickets were $30 and included pork barbeque, sides and a pint of beer – after all, brewing is a part of our national history – as is barbeque; as is caring for each other across distance, class, race and ethnicity.

This guy with the funny hat seemed pretty popular