ALTON - The Fifth Annual First Responders Day and Kickball Fundraiser held at Gordon Moore Park recently was again a huge success.
"We had 14 teams play a double-elimination bracket," Tommy Davison of the Alton Fire Department said. "Teams included: Alton Fire Department, Alton Police Department, Madison County Sheriffs Department, Brighton Fire Department, Big River Ambulance (Jefferson County, MO), The Muddy River F.O.O.L.S. ( A firefighters group consisting of members from both sides of the river), Independent Teams, and Sponsor Teams.
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"The Day could not have been done without the support of the many sponsors that contributed: CSM Construction and 1-800-BoardUp provided all the food for the event, Donnewald Distributing provided the beverage trailer, St. Mary’s Church provided the tables and chairs, Shane Cox DJ provided the music from the start of the event until 4 p.m., The Blue Jacks Band played outstanding from 4 p.m. until the end of the event ( The Blue Jacks Band have three police officers in the band), CPR Concepts, Partners Insurance Agency, Simmons Hanley Conroy Law Firm, Simmons Employee Foundation, Smart Choice Auto Sales, Compressions LLC, Granite City Firefighters, Edwardsville Firefighters, Wood River Firefighters, Alton Memorial EMS, Alton Police Officers, and The Max Sports."
He continued: "I would also like to thank all the area restaurants, golf courses, and businesses that contributed to the event. The tournament had some funny moments, One in particular was when Alton Fire played Alton PD. Alton Fire put donuts on each of the bases at the start of the game and had the music turned to the song “Happy” which was Alton Police Departments lip sync video song.
"The food was outstanding once again with pulled pork, brats, and hot dogs and a special thanks along with CSM Construction and 1-800-BoardUp goes out to Andre Straubhaar a Captain with Black Jack Fire Department help with all the food preparation. The Balloon House Water Slide, Way Cool Balloons, and Sno Cones was a big hit with the kids."
The Madison County Sheriff’s Office won the tournament. It was a finals rematch from a year ago against Big River Ambulance. Big River won in 2017 and Madison County Sheriff’s Office got their redemption win, Safelite Auto Glass finished in third place and Alton Police Department in fourth place.
"The thing I like most about hosting the event is seeing all the first responders and their families having fun and enjoying a day together outside of their stressful jobs," Davison said. "The money raised all goes to Responder Rescue which provides assistance: emotional, tangible, or monetary, to any area first responders, who have been injured, become ill or suffered a traumatic situation after all other resources have been exhausted.
"Finally a very special thank you to my family: my wife, Melika, for putting up with me and help organize the event, my sons Taylor and Justin along with my nephew Kendall for helping set up the event, My daughter, Jessica, with helping with the silent auction and 50/50, my mom, Pat, for doing the Sno Cones, my dad and sister-in-law Tom and Jamila for running the beverage stand, my brother, Joe, along with Corey for running the kickball tournament, my sisters Elizabeth and Karen for helping with registration, my brother Robbie and nephew, Deion, for umpiring, and my neighbor, Dave, for all the help with the tables and chairs. As you can see I have a very supportive family and could not have done it without them."
Chris Rhodes also contributed to this story.
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