For the 12th time in 13 years- the folks at the Oklahoma National Stockyards stopped their final Monday sale of the year and did a special fundraiser for the All American Beef Battalion (SteaksForTroops.Com) that was founded by Bill Broadie from western Kansas- The 870 pound calf was sold 27 times midday in the sale arena- and then the calf was actually sold to raise more money for the AABB- $7.25 a pound! With additional pledges still coming in Monday evening, the 2023 tally is right at $57,000.
Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays talked with Chris Carroll of National Livestock and Ben Hale with Western Livestock Commission about the 2023 efforts- and we also reached back to 2019 when we talked with founder Bill Broadie about how this all began- click on the Listen Bar below to hear their comments.
As a thank you to the supporters of those supporting the AABB- National Livestock hosted a ribeye steak lunch right after the fundraiser- using the same menu items that are fed to the troops- a huge tender ribeye, corn, cheesy potatoes, roll and cookie.
Before the start of the fundraiser on Monday- the eleven previous sales had generated $586,835 for the Steaks for Troops efforts. The 2023 event has pushed the cumulative total to over $640,000 since 2011. The website that is dedicated to these efforts explains the mission- “Organize and sponsor steak feeds, entertainment, programs, meetings, and projects with Service Members and their families.” To date- the All American Beef Battalion has served over 425,000 steaks in 26 different states across America.
AABB came to fruition through efforts by the late Bill Broadie, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1966 to 1968, earning two Purple Hearts. Broadie was also a fourth-generation cattleman and worked as a representative for Superior Livestock Auction.
Noticing a similarity in how media was portraying U.S. military members during the wars in the Middle East after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001. Determined to not let younger generations of servicemen and servicewomen endure the same treatment many Vietnam veterans came home to; he founded AABB in 2007. On April 26, 2008, he and a group of loyal volunteers hosted the first AABB steak feed to members of the Kansas National Guard in Olathe, Kan.
By the way- if you would like to donate to the AABB, call 800-310-0220 and talk with Debbie Wedel at National Livestock Credit. You may also visit the All American Beef Battlion website and make your donation with PayPal.
The last year that Bill Broadie was able to attend this largest annual fundraiser for the group was 2019- we talked with him at length- click on the listen bar below to hear our full conversation.
