2010 Sunset Jeep Tour

By Diane Mulligan

It was a picture-perfect Tucson afternoon as dozens of CHART VIP’s prepared for another magical Trail Dust Adventures Jeep Tour followed by a delectable barbecue dinner at Tanque Verde Guest Ranch to benefit our families who have adopted kids with mental illness or mood disorders and require residential treatment.

 

Desert Fund-Raiser

We clambered into the open-air jeeps the first Sunday in October, looking forward to another captivating tour rumbling through the Sonoran Desert. It doesn’t matter how many times you go for the ride, each driver presents you with a unique and memorable experience. Whether it’s stories about the wild west rustlers, explanations of ancient petroglyphs or yarns about outlaw’s dreams of finding “gold in them thar hills” even the best Old Pueblo historian will learn something new.  You even eat cactus straight from the trail. The experienced cowhand drivers make this a safe trip for young and old alike.  Every age group loves it.

As the sun began to set, the jeeps rolled into the “cottonwoods” shelter at The Tanque Verde Guest Ranch. The mouth-watering smells of steaming hot chicken and beef barbecue, corn on the cob and “slaw” wafted in the breeze. After two hours on the trail, guests were ready for cool drinks. Fry’s and Safeway donated the chips and salsa which were immediately devoured.

And the cowhand drivers weren’t through. Tarantulas and other desert creatures were passed around to the squeals of delight from guests of every age. In the background, the music of The Kevin Pakulus band added to the ambience.

Kevin Pakulis is an outstanding professional country western musician who brought along Larry Lee Lerma and Donny Russel to entertain our guests.  These guys have a fantastic sound. They played, sang and entertained for hours and they did it all for free!  Jim Mulligan even joined in. Kevin and the guys have a new CD called “Shadesville”.  Their music is fun and lively and if you are interested in hearing it here is a link to Kevin’s web site at www.kevinpakulis.com. 
Please listen and consider buying the CD.

For the last three years Jim Click and the Automotive Team has sponsored the CHART Jeep Tour. We are immensely thankful for his support.  The Click donation covers most of our costs and allows us to grant nearly 100% of the event proceeds to our CHART families.

 

 

 

 

 

Trail Dust Adventures drivers, Kurt Klosiewski, Bob Patterson, Bob Cacolici, Harold Potts, and Jim Mulligan, volunteered their time for this special event and we sincerely appreciate it. You can find more about Trail Dust Adventures at www.traildustadventures.com. 

Twenty-five Tucson vendors and artists donated items to our silent auction. Each one of these items was unique and represented the Tucson culture.  Because of all of these giving Tucsonans, CHART was able to realize an additional $900 from the auction.

 

 

Joan Hilman, a lovely lady who helped CHART with our raffle last year, was the backbone of our auction.  Joan is a small retiring lady who has a will of iron and when she says she will find auction items you can count on it.   Joan, thank you so much for all you hard work in the hot Arizona sun.

 

Following is a list of all those who donated to the silent auction by giving an article or gift certificate from their business or artistry.  Thank you so much for everything.  You made our event a much bigger success.

Kurt Klosiewski Three handmade walking sticks
Gail Klosiewski Three original paintings
The Botanical Gardens A Family Membership
Pinnacle Peak Dinner for Two
Jim Mulligan Woman’s Painted Shirt, Two Tickets to The Pima Air & Space Museum
Gad About Beauty Salon Signature Beauty Supplies + $85 Gift Certificate
Hall of Frames Poster
Eileens of Tucson Gift Certificate
The Well Rounded Woman Laurel Birch Shirt, Bag, Scarf
La Contessa Dresses Gift Certificate
Westin La Paloma Dinner for Two at Azul
The Loop Jean Co. Gift Certificate
Tucson Appliance Portable Induction Cooktop
Diane Mulligan Two Hours of Public Relations Services
Image Pearls Two Necklaces
Gas Light Theatre Two Tickets to any Show
Invisible Theatre Two Tickets to any Show
Hilton East Hotel Dinner for Two and an overnight stay
Trader Joes/Wilmot Gift Basket
Az State Museum Admission for Two
Joan Hilman Bracelet and Necklace

Finally and most importantly we have to thank all of you who purchased tickets to either the barbecue or the barbecue and jeep tour or were the high bidder on an auction item...  This is a very difficult year financially for many people and we all appreciate the sacrifices you made to join us.  Without you CHART would not be able to continue.  Thank you, thank you. We were able to clear $3300 for our efforts.

If you have suggestions or how we can improve this event please let me hear from you.
We love doing it and want to continue it on a yearly basis, so if you have ideas, please call Mary Ann at 520 749 2151 or email me at maryannchart@q.com.