The IOU Foundation

Take a quick look at just SOME of what we do.


	BBQ Austin - At the Travis County Expo. Center Once again, The IOU Foundation joined forces with its competitive cooking team, IOU BBQ, for another fanastic and successful year at BBQ Austin. The event grew to its largest yet, with 261 teams, 218 Chief Cooks, and more than 40,000 guests and supporters. The IOU Crew had a blast participating alongside some of the most talented cooking teams in the nation, and came home with 2nd Place Award for "Hardest Working Pit" and a 2nd Place Award for "Top Fundraiser", at this annual weekend long fundraiser for educational scholarships.

	Holiday Catering The IOU Foundation is 100% run by volunteers, and is only able to operate through the generosity of others. Catering gigs throughout the year, allow us to gather funds to help cover the expenses that are necessary in order for us to help those in need. If you have a holiday party or event that you'd like to spice up with some Award Winning Texas Barbecue, while assisting our charitable efforts, do not hesitate to reach out to IOU.

	Veteran's Day Every November, you can find the IOU Crew on the grounds of Camp Mabry, honoring America's heroes. Throughout the weekend meals are served to veterans, visitors and re-enactors as the Texas Military Forces Museum, shares knowledge about those that gave all to preserve our freedom.

	Cooking For A Cause Raises The Bar...YET AGAIN! With 21 years of teamwork, and $120,692 raised at this year's event, the 'cooking for a cause crew' topped a major milestone of fundraising, by exceeding the ONE MILLION DOLLAR mark!. This year's collections were donated to The Central Texas Food Bank and No Hunger Inc.

	Barrington Halloween Ghosts, Goblins, and Ghouls haunt the grounds of Barrington Way every October. IOU joins in on the fun with participation at the Barrington Halloween holiday dispaly. And this is not just your average ordinary holiday display. It is simply AMAZING, and you must see it in person to get the complete understanding of how amazing it really is. Kids from all ages line the sidewalk, all the way down the street and around the bend, anxiously waiting to take a short walk through Barrington Halloween. This years' theme was Barrinton Haunt and was once again a huge success. Take a look at the above video to some insight on the event. Special thanks and recognition to Coleman Jennings.


	It's an IOU School Supply Drive Please consider supporting our School Supply Drive for Berkman Elementary. It’s soooo easy. You can purchase items and drop them in our collection boxes at Slackers Brewing Co. and Salus Chiropractic, or you can make a cash donation right now through Venmo. Any and all donations are greatly appreciated!

	Red, White and Blue! This year we decided to celebrate Independence Day with over Thirty-five Thousand of our closest friends! Despite the 107 degree temps, fun was had by all of Team IOU and we can't wait for next year!

	We continue to honor our Heroes. Every Memorial Day, IOU honors and celebrates those that have served or continue to serve. This year's event at Camp Mabry came complete with a reenactment presentation from the Texas Military Forces Museum.

	Whata-Weekend! Team IOU was thrilled to be a part of BBQ Austin 2023! The event drew tens of thousands of guests and over 200 competitive cooking teams. It was a record breaking year of fundraising, totaling more than $555,000. IOU came away taking home a 5th Place Trophey for Fundraising, and a 1st Place Trophey for Most Elaborate Rig!

	Celebrating Success and 20 Years! The 20 Year Anniversary of The Sine Die Smokers brought with it, cold-cold weather, and huge-huge success! $118,990 raised for No Hunger Inc, and The Central Texas Food Bank.

	Honoring our Veteran Heroes Another Veterans Day, another weekend of saying THANK YOU! We take pride in being a part of the Veterans Day event at Camp Mabry every November, and honoring those brave soldiers who gave all for our freedom.

	Lone Star Chapter Military Vehicle Preservation Association What a great time it was, spending the weekend with military veterans and supporting their passion of collecting, restoring, preserving and displaying military vehicles and equipment.

	A Very Special Delivery The first day of school at Berkman Elementary included a special delivery from The IOU Foundation. With support from the great fans and supporters of IOU, this years school supply drive brought in brand new pencils, crayons, markers, notebooks, headphones, paint, highlighters and much-much more. THANK YOU to everyone who contributed to this great cause.

	Summer Break is almost over. Please consider supporting our School Supply Drive for Berkman Elementary. It’s soooo easy. You can purchase items on the Amazon Wish List, make a donation through our Amplify Austin site, or donate through Venmo. Any and all donations are greatly appreciated!

	Military Order of the Purple Heart MOPH is a congressionally chartered United States war veterans organization. It is unique in that its members are exclusively men and women who have received the Purple Heart award while serving as a member of the U.S. Military. It is always our honor and pleasure to cook for this extrodinary group of American heroes.

	An IOU tradition continues at Camp Mabry Honoring those who gave all Year after year, we proudly return to honor our heroes along side the Texas Military Forces Living History Detachment and the Texas Military Forces Museum.

	A call to action, to help the community of Round Rock On March 21, 2022, several devstatinig tornadoes passed through Central Texas. As has been the case for many natural disasters in our area, IOU BBQ® and The IOU Foundation® immediately teamed up, assembled a crew, and went to work helping our neighbors in the community of Round Rock.

	BBQ Austin Success! After sitting on the sidelines due to Covid restrictions, IOU BBQ® and The IOU Foundation® were finally able to return to BBQ Austin. 184 teams participated in the weekend fundraiser. Out of those teams, IOU BBQ® took 1st Place with Most Elaborate Rig. Throughout the weekend the cooks of IOU served up FREE barbecue and beverages to thousands of guests, and in the process were able to contribute $23,308 toward the Rodeo Austin Scholarship Fund.



Thank you, to our Heroes. Every Veterans Day, IOU honors and celebrates those that have served or continue to serve. This year's event at Camp Mabry commemorated the 36th Infantry Division's combat debut on the Western Front, with a reenactment presentation from the Texas Military Forces Museum.

	Barrington Halloween is back! The event that never ceases to amaze, knocked it out of the park again! This family "fun"draiser attracted kids of all ages from 1 to 92. The theme this year was Jurrasic Park and brought out dinosours of all shapes and sizes from miles and miles around. All donations collected were given to the Dell Children's Hospital and The IOU Foundation.

	Major success at the 19th Annual Cookin' For A Cause! Once again, the cooks of IOU BBQ joined forces with the Sine Die Smokers to cook and serve throughout the two day long fundraising event. All funds raised were directly donated to No Hunger Inc. and The Central Texas Food Bank. This year's event brought in a little over Eighty Five Thousand Dollars!

	What a wonderful day! Texas Longhorn Tailgating Is Back!!! And, it was sooooo nice to be back on campus with our Burnt Orange Friends! Cold Coors Light was flowing, and IOU BBQ® was smokin'! The Longhorns played terrific and closed out the day with a victory. Major Thanks to Coors Light and Captial Wright Distributing for your continuous support!

	Choo-Choo The "IOU Express" takes its annual pitstop, before kicking off the University of Texas Football Tailgate Season.

Ohhhhhh how we missed you! After sitting out for the Covid-Year, our volunteers regrouped and set out to make a difference immediately upon coming out of hibernation. We were honored once again to be a part of the Wheeler's For The Wounded event at Hidden Falls Adventure Park. We continually dodged the rain, however were able to serve more than 200 meals to our Military Veterans!

BBQ Austin 2020 After taking a year off to give the team and volunteers some much needed rest, the IOU crew returned to their familiar stomping grounds out at BBQ Austin in March 2020. The event took place just before Covid-19 started shutting things down. Public attendance was lower than in previous years, but the event was still a success, attracting 157 competitive teams. In addition to taking 2nd Place for Hardest Working Pit, Team IOU proudly contributed $16,112 toward the grand fundraising total of $564,061 for the Rodeo Austin Scholarship Fund.

	Cookin' for a cause, with The Sine Die Smokers This years event drew crowds from far and near. A line formed early, and stretched all the way down the alley. Meals were served for two days, and the result was remarkable. The total raised for the Central Texas Food Bank was $65,600! That donation will provide 262,400 meals. A huge nod to Mace, Holly and Gavin for leading us through another very successful event.

	Barrington Halloween Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water... Halloween October 31, 2019 was a big splash of fun. As is the case every year, the kiddo's showed up in great numbers to walk through the JAWS themed haunted house, more commonly known as Barrington Halloween. This annual event is a huge hit for kids of all ages, and raises funds for Dell Children's Hospital as well as The IOU Foundation®!

	Wheelers For The Wounded, Texas - Fall Event What an honor it was to return to Wolf Caves in Mason, Texas to team up with the Wheelers For The Wounded at their annual off road adventure event. The weekend offers the ride of a lifetime and a small gesture of thanks to our heroes who have given up so much for us. Weather brought in some rain and much cooler temperatures, but did not chase away any of these brave veterans, or those of us that follow their lead. The trails offered some challenges, but not without some laughs and accomplishements along the way. We wrapped up the event enjoying some of our award winning barbecue, cooked by our competitive cooking and serving team, IOU BBQ®.

	Let's Get Together For Some Laughs Michigan born comedian set to hit the stage at Cap City Comedy! Winner of NBC's Last Comic Standing, John Heffron, is having a live performance Friday July 12, 2019 at Cap City Comedy. Notable performances include two half hour specials and a one hour special on the hit stand up show Comedy Central Presents. John has also been seen on several VH1 satire series including I love the 80's: 3D, I Love the 70's: Volume 2, and My Coolest Years: My First Time. He's made numerous appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, E's Chelsea Lately, and 101 Craziest TV Moments.

	Serving for those who served. It's always a pleasure to come back year after year to honor our heroes along side with the fine folks of the Texas Military Forces Living History Detachment and the Texas Military Forces Museum. Every Memorial Day weekend, we participate at the re-enactment, which helps raise funds for the museum and educates the public about our heroes, weaponry and the sacrifices made. This time around the show was based around the Vietnam War, and attracted a full stand of bleachers for every show.

	Showing Support at BBQ Austin 2019 Our competitive cooking team, IOU BBQ®, took the year off from the competitive cooking circuit, which included BBQ Austin 2019. But that did not stop the cooks, volunteers, and fans of IOU from attending the event and filling up the tip jars with generous checks from The IOU Foundation®!

	Fighting hunger and being ThankFUL! Just before Thanksgiving, the cooks of IOU BBQ® once again proudly joined forces with The Sine Die Smokers, as they cooked meals and raised funds in downtown Austin, with the common goal of fighting hunger. Following the leads of Holly, Gavin and Mace, the event brought in more than $67,000, which was awarded directly to the Central Texas Food Bank, and will help with theserving of more than 268,000 meals!

Honoring Our Heroes The Texas Military Forces Museum explores the history of the Lone Star State's militia and volunteer forces, as well as tells the story of the Texas Army, Air National Guard and the Texas State Guard. Every Veteran's Day, we proudly participate at the Close Assault Re-enactment, which helps raise funds for the museum and educates the public about our heroes, weaponry and the sacrifices made during World War II. Despite the cold weather and rain the show went on as planned, wowing viewers at all four shows.

	Laugh For A Cause! New York based actor and comedian comes to Austin to hit the stage at Cap City Comedy! Past performances include Comix, Gotham, Comedy Cellar, and Just for Laughs Comedy Festival. Sean can be seen as a regular on VH1 "Talking Head" shows and has been featured on Comedy Central's"Live at Gotham". He recently made his network television debut on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon".

	Highland Lake Floods - Marble Falls In October of 2018, Texas was hit with record amounts of rainfall, resulting in histroical flooding, the likes of which had never been experienced before in many of our communities. We heard the call from a familiar friend, and without hesitation the cooks of IOU BBQ®loaded up the grill and hit the road to Marble Falls, where we joined forces with The Texas Firewalkers. For three days, under the leadership of The Texas Firewalkers, the combined efforts of bbq cooks, volunteers, and local citizens, resulted in the serving of 2,950 warm meals to the first responders and neighbors who were directly impacted by flooding, and working through the difficult recovery efforts.

	Barrington Halloween 2018... Are you ready for it? The building continues for the 13th year of Barrington Halloween. As is always the case, we can only give you a small peek at the work being done. We invite all ages to join us Halloween Night, October 31, to see the final product, and to join in on the fun. 11306 Barrington Way, Austin, TX 78759, The event is FREE, however tips are accepted. All funds collected will be donated to The Dell Children's Hospital & The IOU Foundation®.

	Wheelers For The Wounded, Texas - Fall Event The first ever Fall Event took place at Wolf Caves, just outside of Mason, Texas. Open runs, with no set trail routes or trail guides, were structured specifically for wounded warriors and their families to embark on the ride of a lifetime. This Wheelers For The Wounded organized event was a great success and plans are already underway for doing it again next October!

Longhorn Tailgate Season Cold Coors Light, hot IOU BBQ®, and the Texas Longhorns! Can it get any better than this?!! A big thank you to our awesome sponsor, Captial Wright Distributing, for your continuous support and for allowing us to be a part of your Texas Longhorn Tailgate Parties.

	2018 Rodeo Austin Scholars In August, 2018, Rodeo Austin hosted its annual Scholarship Awards Ceremony, where they awarded 28 deserving students with $388,000 worth of educational scholarships! The scholarship amounts ranged from $4,000 to $16,000 and were awarded to these outstanding students by universities and foundations based upon financial need, academic performance and community involvement.

	Benefit For Deanna On a hot summer day in downtown Round Rock, Main Street was rockin! It was our honor to be a part of the benefit for Deanna Wheeler, a singer/songwriter, single mother of 3, and military veteran who was suddenly stricken with Guillain Barre' Syndrome; a disease that attacks the central nervous system. With the combined efforts of multiple organizations, we took over The Round Rock Tavern, Rocky's Piano Bar and Long Branch Saloon to raise funds for Deanna. IOU BBQ® plates were flying out of the kitchen all day long, while musicians entertained the crowds, and volunteers co-ordinated multiple on-site fundraising efforts. Huge teamwork and a major success for an amazing individual.

	Texas Military Forces Museum Tucked under the oaks of Camp Mabry, The Texas Military Forces Museum explores the history of the Lone Star State's militia and volunteer forces, as well as tells the story of the Texas Army, Air National Guard and the Texas State Guard. Over Memorial Day weekend, we participated at the Close Assault Re-enactment, which helps raise funds for the museum and educates the public about our heroes, weaponry and the sacrifices made during World War II.

	TMPH Spring Carnival - Triumphant Warrior As Spring 2018 got started, we were honored to join forces with Accenture at their TMHP Spring Carnival. Not only was the day targeted at having fun, but it was also an event for collecting socks and funds that were directly donated to Triumphant Warrior; a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing joy to cancer patients across the United States through the gift of fun socks.

	BBQ Austin 2018 It was our fifth year to participate at BBQ Austin, and ohhhhh did we have a great time! Two great days of slow smoked bbq, live bands, dancing with custom dj music, bloody mary's, cold beer and so much more. All of this was on the agenda, while we raised funds for the Rodeo Austin Scholarship Fund. Such a great time, and for such a great cause! We are already looking forward to next year! 1st Place Hospitality 3rd and 20th Place Beans 4th, 8th, 9th Place Bloody Mary 4th Place In Fundraising with a total of $15,155

	Come Join The FUN and The FUNdraising at BBQ Austin 2018 We are proud to announce our music lineup for our fundraising event at BBQ Austin 2018. And we are VERY THANKFUL for all of these talented musicians willingness to jump on board with Team IOU to help raise funds for the Rodeo Austin Scholarship Fund, and to have a great time while doing it! You should join us too! It is going to be a blast, and we can't wait!

Preparations for BBQ Austin 2018 are underway Although the event is only 1 weekend long. The preparations and building projects take months. Our team of incredible volunteers is already in full swing of putting everything together for hosting a weekend full of fun and FUNDRAISING for the Rodeo Austin Scholarship Fund.

	BBQ Auction & Concert 2017 This year the event featured country music legend Neal McCoy. What an awesome entertainer, and what an awesome fundraiser! As with years past, the theater was filled up with amazinging supporters and donors. Our team helped raise $2800 toward a grand total of more than $145,000 for the 2018 scholarship fund!

	Helping raise funds for The Texas Military Forces Museum Our Veteran's Day was spent honoring our heroes and helping out The Texas Military Forces Museum, as the Texas Military Forces Living History Detachment presented Close Assault 1944; a re-enactement that honors the service and sacrifice of America's veterans.

	Still fighting hunger With all of the recent hurricane relief efforts, this year's #nohunger fundraiser took on even greater importance. The cooks of IOU BBQ® once again proudly joined forces and followed the lead of The Sine Die Smokers, as they cooked meals and raised funds in downtown Austin. The event brought in more than $54,000, which was awarded directly to the Central Texas Food Bank, and will help them serve more than 216,000 meals!

	Barrington Halloween is under construction This year's theme is Ancient Titans of Mt. Olympus, and the building process is well underway. On Halloween night, you can see the final product as well as help support Dell Children's Hospital & The IOU Foundation®. Come on out and join us at: 11306 Barrington Way - Austin, TX.

Congratulations to the 2017 Rodeo Austin Scholars! On August 10, 2017, Rodeo Austin once again hosted its annual Scholarship Awards Ceremony at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. This year $400,000 was awarded to 27 deserving students from across Texas. Scholarship amounts ranged from $4,000 to $16,000 and were awarded to these outstanding students by universities and foundations based upon financial need, academic performance and community involvement. Every August, these award ceremonies pump us up, for our return to BBQ Austin to raise more funds for the next group of scholars.

	Helping raise funds for The Texas Humane Heroes It's always a rewarding feeling when we meet up at Mel's Lonestar Lanes in Georgetown, to help raise some funds for our friends at the Texas Humane Heroes. Way to go IOU Bowl-B-Que!

	Mucking out in Simonton, TX The vounteers of The IOU Foundation® were at it again. This time they were helping out in the small town of Simonton, Texas. Hats off to Tom, David, and Trent for their generous and continual hard work, mucking out home after home in the area, and for leading our crew through the process.

	Paying it forward in Richmond/Rosenberg, TX While helping out in the Richmond/Rosenberg area, our volunteers found a neighborhood where several homes were damaged beyond repair. Many of its citizens were gathering up what they could of their personal belongings, and in the process of relocating. With a limited ability to be of assistance in this sort of situation, the decision was made to go into town and purchase a bunch of Wal-mart gift cards. Then our volunteers returned to the community, and distributed those gift cards to members of the neighborhood.

Serving up some hot meals in Wharton, TX After Harvey, numerous Texans have been left without power, or able to get back into their homes. Many that are able to return home, are greeted with a soaking, mud covered mess. Upon learning of an area that is still dealing with what Harvey left behind, and unable to cook at their homes or to enjoy a hot meal, IOU BBQ® and The IOU Foundation® turned their sights on Wharton, TX where they cooked and served free barbecue plates to its citizens. When our cooks reached the end of their inventory, and were unable to replenish their barbecue supplies, they weren't ready to throw in the towel. After some discussion and brainstorming, they got word that there was a pizza place open for business. Before you know it, IOU BBQ® and The IOU Foundation® were handing out free pizzas to the community.

	Helping cook in Houston, TX With numerous families away from their homes, flood waters everywhere, and electricity sparse, Team IOU heard the call, and headed over to Houston to join up with Operation BBQ Relief and The Texas Firewalkers. Cooking side by side with mobile cookers from throughout the state of Texas as well as from across the country, they worked non-stop serving barbecue meals to the first responders, volunteers, and citizens of Houston. The base camp remained in downtown Houston for 11 days and served 371,760 meals!

	Harvey Relief The IOU Foundation® is looking for your help. We are combining efforts with our friends, the Coco Moo Cookers, to raise money and gather supplies for victims of Hurricane Harvey. There will be several trips made to parts of the Texas coast to provide assistance and relief to those in need. We are actively seeking supplies, volunteers, and cash donations to help with these efforts. The first trip of awesome volunteers is scheduled to leave for Rockport Wednesday, August 30. Additional trips are to continue for at least the next three weeks. If you would like to volunteer, or provide supplies, please contact info@theioufoundation.org.

Memorial Day - 2017 Our Memorial Day was spent remembering its true meaning, with a look back at World War II, as the Texas Military Forces Living History Detachment presented Close Assault 1944; a re-enactement that honors the service and sacrifice of America's veterans.

BBQ Austin 2017, A Major Success! Congratulations to our competitive cooking team, IOU BBQ®, for a remarkable weekend at BBQ Austin 2017. Alongside 142 cooking teams, Team IOU was not only successful with the competition events, but also entertained a full tent throughout the weekend while raising more than Fourteen Thousand Dollars for the Rodeo Austin Scholarship Fund. 2nd, 4th, 6th Place Beans 7th Place Jackpot 9th Place Bloody Mary 12th & 24th Place Chicken 1st, 6th, 21st, & 23rd Place Ribs 23rd Place Brisket 3rd Place Fundraising $14,256 raised for scholarships!

	Another great success at Rodeo Austin's BBQ Auction & Concert - This year's event featured Tracy Lawrence in concert along with some delicious barbecue, and was the jump start to raising money for next years scholarship fund. As expected, supporters showed up to fill the theater with great generosity. Following the inspiring testimonial of a nursing student and recipient of a Rodeo Austin Scholarship our team helped raise over $2800 toward a grand total of more than $140,000 for the 2017 scholarship fund!

	#nohunger The cooks of IOU BBQ® once again joined up with our friends over at the Capitol, the Sine Die Smokers! This years fundraising cause was in full support of a movement started by Mace Massingill-Hunger Fighter called #nohunger. Following Mace's lead, the team raised $43,000 for the Central Texas Food Bank and #nohunger. With that donation alone, the Central Texas Food Bank will be able to serve 172,000 meals!

	Barrington Halloween building continues On Halloween night, you can see the final product as well as help support Dell Children's Hospital & The IOU Foundation®. The fun takes place at: 11306 Barrington Way - Austin, TX. This year's theme is... Wild West Ghost Town!

	Aaannnnd we have a winner! Thank you to Capitol Wright Distributing for their support and congratulations to Melissa on her win of the awesome Grizzly Cooler at our fundraising event this evening! What a great time it was. The comedians were hilarious, the crowd was spectacular and the support was outstanding. We are very thankful to Cap City Comedy for hosting the event and to everyone that bought tickets, sold tickets and joined us at the show for some major laughs. We can't wait to do it again!

	Time for some laughs Described as a high energy comic, Chris Distefano acts out a variety of characters derived from his life, typically leaving you on the edge of your seat from laughter. He was selected from hundreds of comedians across the country to be one of Comedy Centrals “Comics to Watch” as part of the New York Comedy Festival. You can catch Chris all over MTV! He is a current cast member on MTV2s hit show “GuyCode”. You can also see him featured on MTVs “GirlCode”, “Failosiphy” and “Money From Strangers”. On Friday, September 30, Chris takes the stage at Cap City Comedy in Austin. Buy your tickets in advance from any IOU Team Member and a portion or your ticket price will go directly to The IOU Foundation!

	Congratulations to the class of 2016 Rodeo Austin Scholars! Why do we put so much effort into helping raise funds for Rodeo Austin? THIS is why: On August 4, Rodeo Austin hosted the annual Scholarship Awards Ceremony at the Bullock Texas State History Museum, where a record $512,000 was awarded to 34 Texas students. Scholars are selected by universities or foundations based upon financial need, academic performance and community involvement. Scholarships range in amount from $4,000 to $16,000 and help students from all walks of life reach their dreams.

	Drink For A Cause We are excited to announce an awesome fundraising event for The IOU Foundation®...Drink 4 a Cause at Kung Fu Saloon in the new Rock Rose District at The Domain! Show up, enjoy a drink or two, play some old school games and Kung Fu Saloon will donate 15% of beverage sales for August 23rd to The IOU Foundation®! We would love your help spreading the word, but even more so, we'd love to see you there!

	IOU Bowl-B-Que Strikes Again A great time was had by all, as some of our hard working team members returned to Mel's Lonestar Lanes in Georgetown, to help the Texas Humane Heroes raise some funds. And if that weren't enough, they took 2nd place. Way to go IOU Bowl-B-Que!

	Preparations for BBQ Austin 2017 Continue You can support The IOU Foundation® and our competitive cooking team, IOU BBQ®, as we raise money for the Rodeo Austin Scholarship Fund. The fun takes place Friday-March 3, 11am - 6:30pm and Saturday-March 4, 11am - Midnight, at the Travis County Expo Center, 7311 Decker Ln, Austin TX 78724.

	Memorial Day - 2016 Another Memorial Day Weekend with time well spent cooking out at Camp Mabry honoring America's Heroes.

Military Order of the Purple Heart Simply put... it is truely an honor and a privilege to cook for the heroes of the Texas Capital Chapter 1919, Military Order of the Purple Heart "Combat Wounded Veterans".

	BBQ Austin 2016 - Look Ma, No Rain!!! For the first time, our competitive cooking team, IOU BBQ®, had no rain during the BBQ Austin event; and with that came the crowds and the competition. With their tent always full, lines out the door, and 88 teams to compete with, the team relied heavily on their second and third winds, along with extra help from their volunteers. It was A LOT of work and very loonngg hours, but the rewards were plentiful. 1st Place Bloody Mary 2nd Place Bloody Mary 7th Place Ribs 7th Place Chicken Final Table Brisket The team also met and exceeded one of its most desired goals for BBQ Austin 2016, in raising $12,385 toward the Rodeo Austin Scholarship Fund.

	Veterans Day - 2015 Every Veterans Day, the museum at Camp Mabry presents a reenactment of Close Assault 1944. This event is put on to honor our heroes and to raise funds for the operations and upkeep of the Texas Military Forces Museum. For the past several years we have had the privilege of cooking for Company G of the 36 IMP Division at the reenactment and honoring the heroes that continue to protect our freedom.

	Barrington Halloween The work and construction leading up to the Barrington Halloween Fundraiser starts at least in August, often sooner, but the final touches are always put in place by October 31. When the sun goes down on Halloween, the line of visitors instantly starts growing, and zig-zags down the street all night long. For all of their efforts, Steve and Sabrina Butler and their volunteers, ask for nothing in return, but instead place a tip jar on site. This year's donations were awared to Dell Children's Hospital and The IOU Foundation®.

	Cooking For A Cause With The Sine Die Smokers Once a year we have the fine privilage of teaming up with our friends over at The Texas State Capitol, The Sine Die Smokers. When this group gets together, there's just no limit to the fun or the fundraising! This year, with the leadership of Holly and Gavin Massingill, the Sine Die Smokers BBQ Party and Fundraiser brought in $55,200 and was awarded to The KK125 Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation!

VONLUNTEERS - DONATIONS - ACTION! October - 2015, a wildfire breaks out in the Hidden Pines area, between Bastrop and Smithville, Texas. We reach out to our competitive cooking team, IOU BBQ®, for some assistance to help feed the brave firefighters who are battling the blaze. Without hesitation, the cooks drop everything to join our efforts, and team up with the Texas Firewalkers and The Salvation Army. THANK YOU to everyone for your overwhleming support and generosity, and a special thank you to PeeWee, of the Texas Firewalkers, for your fine leadership of this call to action.

	The IOU Foundation - Summer Meeting & Picnic Just a small break for the volunteers of The IOU Foundation®, in the way of a backyard picnic and foundation meeting. Once we got the business side of things completed, our team of great volunteers and supporters turned to the matters at hand, which included some delicious IOU BBQ®, oversized jenga challenges, cornhole battles, and the infamous IOU award ceremony. Special thanks to Momma Sobon for offering up her home and backyard for the festivities.

	Military Order of the Purple Heart In May of this year we had the privilage of cooking again for the Texas Capital Chapter 1919, honoring Military Order of the Purple Heart, "Combat Wounded Veterans". Chapter 1919 works with others to develop a transportation hub in Austin to operate as “HONOR FLIGHT AUSTIN,”. The project is part of a nationwide effort to honor Veterans and provide them with a trip to Washington D.C, and an opportunity to visit their memorial.

	The IOU Foundation takes over Star Hill Ranch With help from our volunteers and the cooks of IOU BBQ, we completed a fundraiser to benefit The IOU Foundation®. The event, a private party/picnic for The Boon Group, took place at the Star Hill Ranch in Bee Cave, Texas. The menu included brisket, sausage, turkey, beans and coleslaw. The weather was awesome, the brisket was mouthwatering, and fun was had by all!

	Thank You Volunteers!!! Who says it has to be all work and no play??? Not us!!! Our organization and the events in which we participate, are only possible because of the awesome volunteers that take time from their busy lives to help us. This summer we took some extra time to get together and enjoy a much needed dip in the pool under the shady oaks of "The Bradley Grove". Thank you Ken and Cathy!