Oct. 29--Back in World War II, as Gen. George Patton broke through enemy lines and outran his supply chain, a massive logistics effort dubbed the "Red Ball Express" was created to move badly needed fuel, food and ammo to the front.
Fast forward to present-day Tampa.
As efforts to help the wounded, injured, sick and their families struggle to keep up with demand, a modern-day Red Ball Express, albeit carrying beer, not war materials, is headed our way.
So far, four truckloads, 5,600 cases, have arrived in Tampa. Over the course of the next two months, about 16,000 cases of Guinness will head south from a warehouse in Georgia.
It's a lot of beer, but there's a catch.
The beer can only be used by military and first responders 21 and older and cannot be used for resale.
This is not a plan for veterans, police or firefighters to show up looking for a six-pack, says Mark Van Trees, who is distributing the beer in Tampa on behalf of an organization running a global campaign against improvised explosive devices.
"We want the beer to be used by the Navy League, Marine Corps League, AMVETS and other organizations who support the military and first responders," says Van Trees.
Diageo Guinness, the worldwide distillery that makes Guinness and many other brands of alcohol such as Smirnoff, Ketel One, Jose Cuervo, Captain Morgan and others, worked with a nonprofit called the Bridge Foundation to distribute the beer, according to company Executive Vice President Guy Smith.
"For many years, we have supported the military," Smith says. "We do a lot of things, in theater and around the country at bases. We felt like this is something that would be a good thing."
The company is distributing Guinness Dark Lager, which hit the market about a year ago.
"It isn't new, but it is newer than the original Guinness, which was first brewed in 1759," he says.
Aside from helping out those who served and first responders, there is another important element to this campaign.
The bridge between the Bridge Foundation and Tampa is a retired Army colonel named Bob Morris, who founded the Global Campaign Against IEDs, a nonprofit dedicated to countering the prolific, cheap-to-make, lethal improvised explosive devices.
According to the organization's website, www.campaignagainstieds.org:
The IED has become a very effective weapon for those who advance their cause through terror and violence. If you exclude Iraq and Afghanistan, there are on average, three IED incidents each day in the remainder of the world. In 2010 these IEDs killed and wounded 7,747 civilians. This amounts to a global epidemic of IED use. Military-focused solutions to this problem have not been and likely will not be successful. A global more holistic approach is required.
Morris says he has been working with the Bridge Foundation for years, and when he learned they were trying to reach out to smaller groups to help distribute the beer, he was glad to help.
"Small community groups have the most impact, and they are almost always overlooked for funding," Morris says. The beer donations are "kind of a boon for organizations so they don't have to spend money to buy stuff."
For his participation, Morris asked for only one thing in return: distribute information about the IED project to each recipient. Given that a good deal of those receiving the beer will have had some direct experience with the devastating effect of IEDs, it's a natural fit.
Nationwide, about 60 tractor-trailers, containing 1,400 cases each, will be distributed, Smith said.
One of the local beneficiaries will be The Tampa Fisher House Golf Classic.
The event, at the Heritage Isles Golf Course in New Tampa, is set for Sunday, and is designed to "raise money and awareness to support the Fisher House," says Valerie Casey, who runs the golf classic.
The Tampa Fisher House, which opened in 2007, is a 16,000-square-foot, 21-bedroom home on the grounds of the James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital, where service members returning from combat areas such as Iraq and Afghanistan undergo long, often difficult, recuperation and rehabilitation.
Casey says that all money raised during the golf tournament will go directly to the Fisher House, which depends on volunteers and voluntary support to enhance its operations and programs.
Receiving free Guinness is a big help, she says.
"Any donation that we have to keep our costs down to nothing, so that we can entertain, make it a fun event and not have to pay any more to support the event is important," Casey says.
The Tampa Fisher House Golf Classic kicks off with registration and a catered lunch at 11:30 a.m. Tee time is 12:30 p.m., and the event ends with an awards dinner and prizes.
For information, call Casey at (813) 317-8886.
For information about the Guinness distribution, email Van Trees at [email protected].
Three troops were killed in Afghanistan last week:
Staff Sgt. Kashif M. Memon, 31, of Houston. He was assigned to the 96th Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne), 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne), Fort Bragg, N.C., and Sgt. Clinton K. Ruiz, 22, of Murrieta, Calif., who was assigned to the 9th Military Information Support Battalion (Airborne), 8th Military Information Support Group (Airborne), Fort Bragg. Both men died of wounds suffered Thursday when their unit was attacked by small arms fire in Khas Uruzgan, Uruzgan province, Afghanistan.
Chief Warrant Officer Michael S. Duskin, 42, of Orange Park, died Tuesday in Chak District, Wardak province, Afghanistan, from small arms fire while on dismounted patrol during combat operations. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg.
There have now been 2,130 deaths in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, the nation's longest war.
Copyright 2012 - Tampa Tribune, Fla.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
