2018 Friends fundraiser to benefit Sutler Store
Preparations are beginning for the 15th annual gala planned by the Friends of Fort Griffin for Saturday, Oct. 6.
An open bar with premium brands, a rib eye dinner, silent and live auctions, music, and dancing will all take place at the fundraiser held again this year at Lynne and Clifford Teinert’s Collins Creek Ranch.
Doug Moreland and the Flying Armadillos will provide live music.
Moreland won the Will Rogers Cowboy Award for Western Music Male Performer of the Year from the Academy of Western Artists. He also received an Entertainer of the Year award from the Texas Music Awards.
The musician and songwriter plays the fiddle, upright bass fiddle, and jazz guitar. Moreland has toured across Texas, the western U.S., and Europe, and has been a guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
Tickets
Anyone 21 years and older is invited to purchase a ticket to the gala.
Attendees do not have to receive an invitation to attend, but they will need to make a reservation, according to Susan Waller, marketing director for Friends of Fort Griffin. Tickets are $50.
“Those already on our mailing list should be looking out for our newsletter,” said Waller. “It just came back from the printers and I will be mailing it out this week.”
To be added to the mailing list, email a request to Waller at susanftgriffin@aol.com.
Projects
As in previous years, almost all the proceeds from the 2018 event will be used to help rebuild and restore buildings at Fort Griffin State Historic Site.
“We also help buy food for the reenactors at the Living History Event at Fort Griffin,” said Waller. “This past year we funded the new roof on the Jackson House at the Fort Griffin State Historic Site. I’ve seen the new roof, and it is beautiful!”
The Friends of Fort Griffin intend to continue moving forward with plans to restore the Sutler Store at Fort Griffin.
Last year the group was considering accepting one of two bids from state-certified archeologists, but then decided to explore a different option for the project.
“We invited two professors of archeology at Texas Tech and their graduate assistant out to visit the site to see if they could work on the project for us,” said Waller. “They said that they enjoyed the visit and were very interested in the work, but that a project that big would take them years. We are hoping to move ahead fairly quickly, so we are re-doing the bid process.”
The archeological research is required before any actual restoration construction can be approved by the Texas Historical Commission.
“It’s going to be a big project, but it’s going to be so cool when it is completed!” Waller said.
The envisioned project, when completed, will include a rebuilt Sutler Store containing period correct items stocking the shelves, a rebuilt officers club, and eventually other outbuildings that were originally included in the store complex.
“Research on the original design has been especially difficult because although the Sutler Store was in the fort complex, it was privately owned,” Waller said. “We’ve found drawings of the store and a handful of photos from 1930. We would love to find blueprints, even older photos, and any drawings from when the store was in use.”
Donations
Friends of Fort Griffin is a 501(c)(3) entity, eligible to receive tax deductible donations.
For more information, call Waller at 762-2699 or mail checks to Friends of Fort Griffin, PO Box 2154, Albany TX 76430.
