Game 13 – Making Warrior Wishes Come True in Kansas City!

We kicked off week 4 in Thursday night in Green Bay making Warrior Wishes come true at the Packers game.

My dad then made his way out to Denver on Saturday afternoon & made wishes come true at yesterday’s Broncos game.

He spent the night at the Denver airport for the 3rd time in 10 days & flew to Kansas City early this morning to surprise a few warriors with the opportunity to go to the Chiefs game!

Our mission to make wishes come true at the Chiefs game all started last night, while my dad was still in Denver. Our Kansas City Ambassadors, Marty & Tracy Burnett teamed up with Buffalo Wild Wings to host some warrior wishes “Alumni” guests for dinner and they also surprised Army Cpt Abraham Kyle with tickets to today’s game.

My dad really wishes he could have been there to catch up with the warriors & see the surprised look on Cpt Kyle’s face when he was presented with the tickets, but everyone said they had a great time without him. We cannot thank Buffalo Wild Wings enough for going above and beyond to take care of all of our guests! This is the 4th straight year that they have helped us make Wishes come true in KC.

My dad landed in Kansas City around 11am & immediately made his way to the world famous Joes BBQ for some delicious food & more importantly, to surprise our 2nd guest for the day.

Upon arrival, Jerry, the manager escorted my dad through a “winding maze” through their kitchen and storage to a private Conference room where Marty, Tracy & The Kyle’s were waiting for him. My dad got to hear all about last night’s dinner & had the opportunity meet the Cpt Kyle & his wife before Army SGT Forrest Huckabey, an unsuspecting warrior, and his wife arrived.

SGT Huckabey was clearly confused as to why he was being brought back through the maze to a private conference room full of strangers.

My dad & Marty greeted him & thanked him for his service. As they sat down to eat, they let him in on the surprise & presented him with tickets to the Chiefs game.

After he realized what was going on, he said he “felt like he was brought back there to play poker with Mafia or something.” His wife, Lakin did a great job keeping the surprise a secret. SGT Huckabey was clearly surprised & extremely excited for this opportunity to go to his first ever Chiefs game!

Everyone got to know each other over some amazing BBQ! Joe’s BBQ is an absolute must when visiting Kansas City. During the pregame meal, my dad presented the warriors with a few thank you letters & new Chiefs caps thanks to New Era.

Then Marty presented them with something very special. Recently, one of Marty’s friends father had passed away. Jim had a special pen made for him before he died and unfortunately was unable to give it to him before he passed. He auctioned off the pen and raised $500 which he donated to Warrior Wishes & the bidder then donated the pen as well and asked that we present it to one of the warriors. Marty then had a 2nd pen made so he could present one to both CPT Kyle & SGT Huckabey.

It was an emotional presentation as Marty shared the story. Both warriors were very appreciative of the gift & I’m sure it will be something they cherish for a very long time!

After lunch, the group got to meet the “Black Daggers” the Army jump team that was jumping before the Cheifs game.

And eventually everyone piled in Tracy’s new car and headed over to Arrowhead stadium to tailgate before the game. Andy Butterworth, a warrior we hosted in 2013, introduced us to the Munce family & they have been hosting warriors at their tailgate every year since! We are very thankful for their hospitality & support!

As game time approached, everyone made their way inside to their awesome seats & cheered loud & proud for their team! They thoroughly enjoyed the experience especially since the Chiefs pulled out the 23-20 win against the Redskins to stay unbeaten on the season. It was a perfect ending to a perfect day!

After the game, the group headed to the Stoney Creek hotel to get a good night sleep.

Operation Warrior Wishes would like to thank Marty & Tracy Burnett for going above and beyond to help make Warrior Wishes come true in Kansas City. They provided Tickets, transportation & some unforgettable moments! We also would like to thank Dan Munce & his family for hosting everyone at their tailgate, Stoney Creek Hotel for providing accommodations to the warriors all weekend long, Buffalo Wild Wings for hosting the Alumni Dinner on Sunday night, Joe’s BBQ for providing a delicious Pre game meal & New Era for providing Chiefs caps to the warriors! We couldn’t have made this experience possible without all of you!

TOGETHER WE MAKE WARRIOR WISHES COME TRUE!

Most importantly, we want to thank Army SGT Forrest Huckabey and Army CPT Abraham Kyle for their years of dedicated service to our country. We salute you!

My dad will be on a 6am flight back to Chicago Tomorrow morning & gets a “day off” before heading out to Tampa on Thursday to make Warrior Wishes come true at the Bucs game! Stay tuned for more details!

It was an honor to host these brave warriors and make their Warrior Wishes come true. If you know a deserving warrior who would love to attend a game on our “All32in17” mission please nominate them today!