Houston Liberty Festival January 26, 2012

Fri. Jan. 27: Carnival, Sporting Clays Tournament, Honor Ceremonies
Sat. Jan 28: Concert feat. Mark Chesnutt, Carnival and all Event elements
Sun. Jan. 29: Carnival, military reenactment camps

Concert Saturday the 28th with Performances By:
Mark Chesnutt :: Chris Brade :: David St. Romain ::Kevin Black Band
Dallas McGilberry and the Tierney Brothers ::Brothers N Arms :: Krippled Dogz :: Crank Case
Steve Krase & The In Crowd :: Gary Boehm & The Texas Bluzzcatz :: Ken Gaines
GA: $10
VIP: $30 Includes BBQ Dinner, private cash bar and special VIP parking. VIP Meet and greet with the artists: Mark Chesnutt (headliner), Chris Brade, Texas Tenors, Kevin Black, David St. Romain

Carnival 1 Day Pass: $25
Carnival 3 Day Pass: $40

Celebrate our Armed Forces and honor their sacrifices at The 5th Annual Houston Liberty Festival benefiting Homes For Our Troops, January 27 – 29, to raise funds to build specially-adapted homes for severely combat wounded veterans The three-day festival at George Bush Park, 16500 Westheimer Pkwy, has expanded to include live music, The Inland Empire Carnival, Viet Nam battle reenactment with helicopter, vendors, auctions, powered parachute demo, helicopter rides, moving presentations with honored Veterans, Sporting Clays Tournament, GNAT Shooting (www.gnatusa.com), a Classic and Exotic Car Exhibit, Flag Retirement Ceremony, , US Army Marksmanship Unit Exhibition Shooters, The US Honor Flag (www.ushonorflag.org), battle reenactments, rides in a Huey and a fully tracked M113 armored personnel carrier, girls on horseback, military equipment displays, impersonators, former POWs from WWII, Korea and Vietnam, War Dogs, Rolling Tributes to our Veterans, Cook Teams and more.

Every day, the men and women of our Armed Forces put their lives on the line protecting our freedom and independence. Some of those lives are lost, and some are profoundly and forever altered, suffering injuries so severe that they must rely on others for care, losing much of their independence. These severely injured veterans have a desperate need for specially adapted homes that will help restore the independence they have lost. For what they have sacrificed to protect our homes, we can, and should, build them their homes. Homes for Our Troops can "give back" freedom and independence to them through a gift of a specially adapted home.
Festival Features:

Viet Nam Battle Reenactment with Huey helicopter
Vintage and Exotic Car Show
Inland Empire Carnival
Powered Parachute Flights
Sporting Clays Tournament
Helicopter Rides and Military Exhibits
Honor Ceremonies: Veterans, POWs, MIA Families, Flag Retirement
Tribute Ride of Veteran & POW Guests by Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Club
Cook Teams
Food Vendors
Craft and Specialty Vendors
Auctions
War Dog demos and adoption
Shooting Demonstrations

Homes for Our Troops, is a national non-profit whose mission is to build specially adapted homes for service members who have been severely wounded in combat operations since September 11, 2001. All specially adapted homes are built at NO COST to the veteran. HFOT relies completely on private donations, and receives no government funding whatsoever. All monies raised allows the vets the chance to live their lives, as independently as possible, in their own homes.


Festival Information and Sponsors
Bob Fuldauer
281.802.2656
[email protected]

Vendors
Michael R. Martin
281.802.2776
[email protected]

5th Homes For Our Troops Benefit Festival
2012 Veteran Recipient Bios

These American heroes had their lives forever altered twice: first by war and severe injury, and second by the relief from what would otherwise be greater isolation and hardship provided by getting their own specially built home from Homes For Our Troops. These vets will explain what a vital difference their home has made to them and their families and why it is critical to provide for their wounded comrades. Homes For Our Troops can not contract with a Vet to provide a home until funding is in place, so your contributions through this event are essential to providing for more deserving Vets. The V.A. estimates there are 1,000 to 1,500 severely injured and wounded Vets who have already been released from the hospital and are struggling to find a place. This is a low estimate and many more have yet to be released and, sadly, there will be more wounded as operations continue.

Austin Burchard: Lutz, FL, Army Sgt., Gunshot wound while manning a post in Wardack Province, Afghanistan on March 19, 2009. He suffered severe internal and spinal injuries that left him a paraplegic.

Nicholas McCoy; Boerne, TX, Army Staff Sergeant, On his second deployment in December 2006, when an IED blast near Iskandariyah, Iraq, caused injuries so severe it resulted in the amputation of both legs.

Neil Frustaglio: Marion, TX, Marine Corporal, He was left severely burned and a double amputee after two IED explosions in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, in December 2005.

Eric Edmundson: New Bern, NC, Army Sgt. , A member of the 172nd Stryker Brigade, 4th Squadron, 14th Calvary, the Stryker vehicle he was driving hit an IED on October 2, 2005. He sustained shrapnel wounds to his abdomen and right leg, and fractures of the T4-T5 vertebrae. He went into cardiac arrest and, due to the time taken to revive Eric, he sustained an anoxic brain injury. This left him unable to walk, talk, eat or drink.

Latseen Benson: Elizabeth, CO, Army Sergeant, Was on his second deployment to Iraq in November 2005, serving with the 101st Airborne, when a roadside bomb left him a double amputee.

Brett Wolf: Weatherford, TX, Army Specialist, On September 11, 2007, he was injured when serving with the 25th Infantry in South Kirkuk, Iraq, and left a double amputee.
Daniel Robles: San Antonio, TX, Army Master Sergeant, Was on his third deployment in April, 2006, when he lost both of his legs in an IED attack near Baghdad, Iraq.

Craig Andrade: Marion, TX, Army Specialist, On his 1st deployment in February 2005 when an IED blast near Baghdad left him with the loss of both legs above the knees and a burst eardrum.

Kade Hinkhouse: Elizabeth, CO, Marine Lcpl, Was in Ramadi, Iraq, in October 2005, when his HUMVEE was hit by a dual stacked IED. He was ejected, leaving him with a depressed skull fracture, collapsed lungs and a severe lef injury. His right leg was amputated and 45% of his skull removed and later repaired by cranial plastic surgery.

Bryant Jacobs: Herriman, UT, SPC Jacobs was serving in Iraq with a month to go on his tour of duty when his HMMWV was hit by an IED on December 3, 2004.

Matthew Keil: Parker, CO, Army Staff Sergeant, On his 2nd tour of duty, the 25 year old soldier was hit by sniper fire near Ramadi, Iraq. Injuries left him a quadriplegic, though he has some use of his left arm.

Shawn Monroe: Santa Fe, TX, Staff Sergeant, Monroe was injured when mortar fire hit while he was waiting outside a Baghdad police station.He lost one leg, suffered extreme injuries to the other leg, and sustained severe internal injuries.

Joseph Smith: Thomasville, NC, Army Sergeant, Smith, a former Marine, was on his 4th deployment when he was left with a spinal injury and Traumatic Brain Injury after an attack at his FOB in Afghanistan in November 2004.

Nicholas Orchowski: Commerce City, CO, Was injured severly while outside Baghdad in 2004, which left him with a paralyzed right arm and an incomplete quadriplegic. At this time, Nick can walk.

Jose “Ivan” Perez: Marion, TX, Marine Cpl, Perez was left with multiple injuries after an IED explosion in Fallujah, Iraq, on February 27, 2007. Already suffering TBI from a previous explosion, Perez lost part of a finger on his left hand and received a spinal cord injury leaving him with Paraplegic Cauda Equina Syndrome.

Jose “Daniel” Gasca: El Paso, TX, Marine Corporal, Gasca was left a double amputee after an IED explosion in Falluja, Iraq in September 2008. Cpl Gasca was driving an up-armored HUMVEE when it was hit by a control detonated IED. He suffered from spinal fractures, broken ribs, a ruptured spleen and leg injuries so severe that both of his legs required amputation.

Chase Matthews: Eddyville, KY, Sergeant

Sgt. Chasetin Matthews was deployed to Iraq in March 2007 when he lost both of his legs as a result of an IED explosion. Matthews was driving an up-armored HUMVEE, when an IED detonated directly beneath the vehicle. Unable to evacuate the vehicle, he was pulled to safety by his commander and, during an ambush, was airlifted to a field hospital.

2012 POW/MIA/NOK Honored Guest Bios

POW Captain James L. Lollar: Wills Points, Tx,Air Force, Viet Nam, Area of Capture: Hoa Lo - Hanoi on 20-Dec-72, Released: 29-Mar-73

POW Col. Donald R. Spoon: San Antonio, TX, Air Force, Viet Nam, Area of Capture: North Viet Nam on 22-Jan-67, Release Date: 4-Mar-73

POW Terrence S. Kirk: Walnut Springs, TX, Represented by daughter Carolyn Noonan and widow Millie Kirk, 30 year Marine, Captured second day of WWII, secretly built camera to document war crimes.

POW PFC William E Baker: Nemo, TX, Army, Korea, Area of Capture: Koto-r-North 1-Dec-50, Release Date: 5-Sept-53

POW Lt. Col. Tim Ayres: Conroe, TX, Air Force, Viet Nam, Capture Date: 3-May-72, Release Date: 28-Mar-73

POW Viet Nam Marine Corporal Patrick Reilly: Full Metal Jacket was based on his battalion "Second Battalion Fifth Marines Hotel Company Weapons Platoon". His name is in the book "Fire in the Streets". The TET Offensive claimed 1441 Marines and over 5000 clivilians. Patrick witnessed the mass murder by the communists during the TET Offensive.MIA 1st

LT. Richard Lee Russell: Represented by wife, Marianne Russell, Missing in Action: 26-April-1972, Navigator on a C130 shot down near An Loc, South Vietnam

MIA Navy LCMD Egan: Represented by Niece Linda Sanders, WWII POW-PTO Navy Seaman Vincente A Garrido, Represented by son Ben Garrido, National Director of AXPOW for South Central Region and National Nominations and Elections Committee