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OBR PROVIDES RELIEF FOLLOWING CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES

OBR Command Center, a modified 18-wheeler, donated by Prairie Fresh, rolls into action

More Than 20,000 Meals Served in Nine Days

When disaster strikes, our goal is to be there providing a helping hand and a hot meal. We're proud to put our passion for BBQ to work for the men and women fighting the fire and those impacted.”
— Stan Hays, co-founder and president/CEO of OBR
PLEASANT HILL, MO, USA, August 14, 2018 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Peculiar, Mo. (Aug. 14, 2018) – Operation BBQ Relief (OBR) deployed to northern California in early August, supporting local efforts to fight the Carr Fire outside of Redding. During nine days on the ground serving first responders and members of the community in need, the OBR team:
• Served 20,553 meals
• Coordinated with more than 150 volunteers
• Coordinated with 31 organizations/shelters to receive meals
• Traveled more than 4,000 miles round trip

“When disaster strikes, our goal is to be there providing a helping hand and a hot meal. During our California deployment, we were proud to put our passion for BBQ to work for so many of the men and women fighting the fire and those impacted by it,” said Stan Hays, co-founder and president/CEO of OBR. “We also saw an immense outpouring of support from our network of volunteers in California, as well as donors across the country and around the world. Individuals looking for a way to help, along with the support of our partners, enable us to promptly respond when faced with these disasters.”

Working alongside volunteers who included California native and celebrity chef Guy Fieri, and a team from chef Jose Andres’ World Central Kitchen, the OBR team prepared meals that were delivered by the Salvation Army to four main evacuation sites, as well as many other groups serving those in need and first responders.

Making its first major deployment of 2018, OBR sent its Command Center, a full-size tractor-trailer sponsored by Prairie Fresh, a Seaboard Foods brand. It serves as the epicenter of operations, where volunteers track cooking progress, total meals served and supply inventories. Also deployed to California was “Boss Hog,” which is a flatbed trailer equipped with five commercial smokers provided by Ole Hickory Pits and a 56,000 watt generator provided by Sunbelt Rentals. Capable of smoking up to 350 pork butts every 10 hours, Boss Hog is where OBR volunteers prepare meals.

The OBR team, along with the OBR Command Center and Boss Hog, will be at The American Royal World Series of Barbecue® in Kansas City, Kansas, this September 14-16. During the Royal, they will be preparing meals for a military appreciation event, while also providing BBQ samples to other attendees.

Since its inception in May 2011, OBR has served more than 1.77 million meals with the help of 6,722 total daily volunteers. It’s been deployed for a total of 268 days in 50 communities in 25 different states around the U.S.

OBR depends on donations and volunteers to make a difference. Please visit operationbbqrelief.org to learn how to help.


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About Operation BBQ Relief
Mission Statement – Operation BBQ Relief provides compassion and offers hope and friendship to those whose lives have been affected by disasters across the United States. We leverage our expertise in cooking and catering barbecue meals with our ability to quickly mobilize our teams into any area where disaster disrupts and tears apart the lives of Americans.

Values – We value honesty, compassion, friendship, hard work and respect for others and for resources with which we are provided. Decisions and actions of Operation BBQ Relief will always be made and carried out with these values in mind. We want the communities we serve to be able to state without reservation that Operation BBQ Relief upheld these values while making a positive impact in the lives of their citizens.

Vision – The vision of Operation BBQ Relief is that all people involved in relief efforts during natural disasters will understand the true meaning of compassion for those who have lost possessions and loved ones, and that they will further utilize all of their God-given skills and abilities to better the lives of those affected.

David Marks
Operation BBQ Relief, Chief Marketing Officer
610-564-0885
email us here

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