Not only was this the first time this particular MADD event was held in Round Rock, but it was also the first time Denni Ruze Productions had the opportunity and the honor to bring the beat to it.
The event was held in the Virg Rabb Pavilion at Old Settlers Park, which just happens to be DJ Moe’s favorite park in the whole wide world. As a result, doing this gig was a no brainer for Moe!
For the week leading up to this event, we were watching the weather, since October was becoming a very wet month. However, on event day, the sun was out, the temps were nice, and even the bugs seemed to give us some peace! (Except for one pesky bee that kept trying to befriend DJ Moe!) This was certainly one of those meant to be events.
Why We Do It
If you’ve seen our Facebook page or read any of our other gig blogs, you probably know that Denni Ruze Productions brings the beat to a number of causes: breast cancer, prostate cancer and Meals on Wheels, to name a few. This cause, however, is in a class all its own, because this problem is so easily preventable. The statistics are even more staggering. In our country, over 10,000 people are needlessly killed by drunk driving each year. Further, there are almost 300,000 injuries annually. In fact, there are more than 300,000 incidents of drinking and driving each day!1
Some folks probably think it’s a touch hypocritical for a DJ to support Mothers Against Drunk Driving, since DJs typically play gigs where alcohol is served. But that couldn’t be further from the truth! Certainly, we never encourage drinking and driving, and we remind people to get home safe at those gigs serving alcohol. We whole-heartedly support MADD and the work it does.
If you have not already been affected by this, try and imagine how you would feel if you or a loved one was injured (or worse) simply because someone else made a bad choice – to drink and drive!
The Speakers
The talented Brittany Glas, journalist for KXAN, was the Master of Ceremonies. Brittany was recently honored by MADD Texas for her report of the new Travis County Vehicular Crime Department and interviews with the many victims/survivors and their families. If you’re interested, as I was, you can see Brittany’s report on YouTube.
After giving us some background on the event, Brittany introduced the guest speaker, Round Rock Police Chief Allen Banks.
Chief Banks provided some very heartfelt information about his personal commitment to drunk driving prevention. These senseless tragedies impact far too many people. He shared his personal experience about a childhood friend killed by a drunk driver. Consequently, I have no doubt that Chief Banks and his entire department are passionate about keeping Round Rock residents safe from drunk drivers.
Next up was MADD Regional Executive Director, Jaime Gutierrez. He spoke about the event and gave some details about the timeline and the course. When he finished, it was time to hand out some team fundraising awards. You could almost feel the positive vibe as we acknowledged people for their significant efforts!
Central Texas Walk Like MADD 2018 Memorial Wall
A number of posters made up The Memorial Wall. Each poster had an image of a victim and told their tragic story, all being honored and remembered by this walk. We considered it absolutely necessary to include each victim in this post. Above all, we hope you take the time to read each of the stories and see who they are. The only thing all the victims had in common was a life cut short by someone making a bad choice.
Let’s Walk Like MADD!
After the speakers, it was time for the walkers to stretch and warm up. Consequently, the team manager leading the warm up exercises asked DJ Moe to play Cupid Shuffle (by Cupid), and Moe was eager to comply. Similarly, even some of the Round Rock police officers seemed to get into the warm up beats!
Finally, it was time to do what we came here to do: walk like MADD! After a short countdown, they were off. The looped course was pretty and unseasonably green. As a result, nearly all the walkers did two laps! DJ Moe provided encouragement to the walkers coming around the bend, and he thus played quite the assortment of upbeat hits to keep the energy level high.
After the walk, there was ample time to visit the memorial tables and talk to families, as well as put in bids for the silent auction. The Round Rock Police Department and the local Constable had community outreach tables set up, and they weren’t shy about talking to participants. DJ Moe continued to bring the beat until around 2:30, when it was time for the live music talent to begin his performance.
Giving Thanks
We would like to recognize some folks who gave us some assistance during the gig. First, we’d like to thank Andrea Anthony, the MADD Special Events Manager. Andrea worked closely with DJ Moe to ensure everything moved along as scheduled and answered any questions we had. She was very professional, yet easy to get along with and personable. We hope we have an opportunity to work with Andrea again.
Next, we would like to thank a particular Round Rock police officer who offered to help us with the heavy lifting. As [his] luck would have it, he came along right after all the really heavy lifting was already done, but he did help with whatever was left. Further, he gave DJ Moe a Round Rock police cruiser squishy, for those gigs that don’t go nearly as well as this one.
Lastly, we would like to thank Jaime Gutierrez and MADD Texas for giving Denni Ruze Productions the opportunity to participate in Central Texas Walk Like MADD 2018!
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