SUNDAY, DECEMBER 11TH, 2022 – GARY SINISE FOUNDATION PRESENTS THE “ALMOST RED, WHITE, AND BLUE COMEDY TOUR” FEATURING JOSH BLUE, ADAM KEYS AND DEWAYNE WHITE:

James Stuckmann (Production manager) and I left Nashville at around 10:00 am this morning to Gulfport, MS.  Dewayne was flying in from DC, Adam from Sacramento and Josh from Denver.  Weather was a challenge for everyone.  Dewayne got hit the hardest with a 2 hour delay out of DC.  But we booked very long connecting times (something I do on every flight since the changes due to COVID) and he still met us in Atlanta.  Adam connected through DFW and met us about 10 minutes after we landed.  Josh wasn’t due to land until 7:30 pm that night and we were going back to pick him up.

I had a strange thing happen when I went through TSA Pre-Check.  My boarding pass didn’t say “TSA Pre-Check” so I had to go back to the ticket counter to get it corrected.  The agent said that my profile has an extra number in my global entry number and that I have to login through my computer to correct it.  So strange because only a few months ago, my Delta profile decided to change my birthday and make me 26 years old!

We have three shows on bases in Mississippi – tomorrow night is Keesler AFB, Tuesday night is NCBC (Naval Construction Battalion Center) and Wednesday is Camp Shelby.

We grabbed our bags and James retrieved the HUGE SUV we rented. We have luggage and Adam’s wheelchair so we needed something big.  It was only about a 20 minute drive to the hotel.  We had original booked a Courtyard by Marriot but when James came down for the site survey, he realized it was not a very good facility.  We moved our lodging to IP Casino Resort and Spa.  Definitely nicer but still a typical “Casino Hotel”.

The lobby was pretty empty when we arrived except for about 6 desk clerks working.  When we walked up to the counter to check in, the desk clerk told us that there is NO HOUSEKEEPING for the entire 4 days/nights we’re here.  Said we can call “Zero” and tell housekeeping what we need and they will bring it up.  But they will not clean our rooms!  Has nothing to do with COVID and everything to do with being short staffed!  He also said that the restaurant where breakfast is served is closed but they had relocated it to an area on the second floor so we could still get breakfast.  Then he dropped another surprise on us….the water system for the entire city is contaminated and we can only drink bottled water and use bottled water to brush our teeth.  Showering is the only thing allowed in “their” water!  Desk clerk said they put extra bottles of water in our rooms and we could call down for more.

I checked Adam in first and when it came time for them to give him his key, they said that only the first night had been pre-paid and we would all have to pay for the additional 3 nights individually!  James called the GSF travel agent and the hotel had to email her forms to complete and return….all of which she had already provided when she made the original reservations.  Even though we were the only people in line, the desk clerk insisted that we move away from the check in counter.  After about 30 minutes, he came over and in a very fake “British accent” told James that the travel had signed the form but that she forgot to check one of the boxes! Then he started speaking in his regular Southern accent. Strange!

So 1½ hours after our arrival at the hotel, we were finally allowed to check in.  You would think that the desk clerks would have our room keys ready for us since they knew we were there and waiting.  But, oh no, it took another 10 minutes per person just to get our keys.

We were all hungry and decided to grab something to eat “quickly” at the Half Shell Oyster House which was nearby.  James had eaten there previously and said it was excellent….but then he likes oysters.  LOL.  The base is catering our dinner from there tomorrow night, too.  Adam decided to eat at the hotel because he was really tired from the long trip here from Sacramento.  It was excellent food and I tried my first oyster – but it was grilled, definitely not raw!  It was actually good but I stuck with my shrimp and grits as my entrée.

Josh landed early so we had to rush to the airport to pick him up.  We stopped at a gas station and purchased water since the hotel only provided the little “half bottles” of water.   I walked around the Casino just to get a feel for where the exercise room and restaurant are located.  To do that, I walked past hundreds of slot machines – and they were ALL penny slots.  So strange!  And, there was smoking allowed in all but one of the areas!  I can’t remember the last I’ve been somewhere that allows smoking in public areas.  I am very allergic to cigarette smoke so I had to cut my “tour” short and get back in the room.   It was freezing when I first walked into my room— because the thermostat was set at 65 Degrees.  It still hadn’t warmed up when I got back.

Welcome to Mississippi…LOL.  Good news is, we are going to have three fantastic performances for some bases that really need the morale boost especially right before Christmas.  All the other challenges are just minor inconveniences.  So thankful to Gary and the Foundation for sponsoring these tours.

More tomorrow…
Jude

 

MONDAY, DECEMBER 12TH, 2022 – FIRST SHOW FOR THE GARY SINISE FOUNDATION “ALMOST RED, WHITE AND BLUE COMEDY TOUR” AT KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE:

Worked until 3 am so didn’t get up until 8 am.  Was going to go straight to the fitness room but had too many emails and messages to respond to.  Finally made it to the gym at 11 am.  It is a great work out facility with tons of machines.  I worked out for 30 minutes and then showered and “tried” to have breakfast at the only restaurant in the hotel for breakfast.  I had planned to grab something “to go” but there was a big sign saying all food had to be eaten on the premises.  And, they stopped serving breakfast 15 minutes before I arrived and refused to make me an omelet.  I ended up buying fruit from a little coffee shop in the lobby!  Mississippi is strange.

Met James in the lobby at 1 pm for the drive to Keesler. As with most bases, Security was unable to find the access information on the production team or for me and James.  Tabatha (our POC) was already at the visitor’s center working on getting the crew cleared when we arrived.  It took over an hour to get our passes and James and I were already in their system!  Typical of every base we visit unfortunately.

The venue is a movie theatre and very nice but very large.  Capacity is 961!  It didn’t take the production crew very long to load in since they only had to bring in minimal lights and our video screens.  James went back to the hotel and picked up the comedians at around 4:30 pm. Mic check was quick and easy and then dinner from delivered from the same restaurant where we ate last night.   The flight chief, his wife and some of her friends, and Lt. Colonel Katherine Kuc came backstage to welcome the group before the show began.

The show started on time and there were 108 people attending.  I sat near the back of the theater and watched the reaction of those attending.  Everyone had so much fun and there was non-stop laughter.  The group took photos with a lot of the people afterwards.  The drive back to the hotel was only about 10 minutes so we were back before 10 pm.

Great “first show” and looking forward to visiting NCBC tomorrow.

Jude

 

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13TH – PERFORMANCE AT NCBC IN GULFPORT, MS:

Lobby call for James and I wasn’t until 12:30 pm and I was hoping to get in another good workout.  But, I got stuck on several phone calls as soon as I woke up and ran out of time.  Thought I would try the hotel restaurant again and finally have that egg white omelet.  But, when I arrived, there was no one there to seat me.  There were only about 6 other people in the restaurant but no staff anywhere.  I finally left after 10 minutes of waiting and decided just to grab a green tea latte on the drive to NCBC.

The drive today was also short – only about 30 minutes.  Tomorrow the drive to Camp Shelby is going to be around 1 ½ hours.  We made a stop at CVS so I could pick up some Zyrtec (which I forgot to bring and the smoke in the hotel and casino is killing me!) and another pair of reading glasses which still haven’t turned up at lost and found!  I was trying to rush so we wouldn’t be late getting to the base but there was no one at any of the cash registers.  I finally found a lady stocking shelves and she helped me look for someone to check me out.  The lady who was supposed to be working the cash register was in the cosmetics department with a customer explaining the difference in about two dozen different shades of lipstick! Except for the fact that my Zyrtec was encased in this huge plastic container, I could have gone through self check out!  As I said, it’s Mississippi.  To their credit, everyone here is so friendly.  It’s just a much slower pace and very different lifestyle.  Reminds me too much of Alabama where unfortunately I grew up!

We were advised that the Visitor’s Center had our passes for us and to stop there before attempting to access the gate.  The agent there did have our information and it only took a few minutes for us to be allowed to enter.  The sound techs got there a few minutes before us and didn’t have any problem entering either.

The lady that we had coordinated everything with for the performance tonight is not here because she already had a trip to Italy planned when we extended the offer.  She was meticulous in planning everything – which I love.  Her staff is excellent and were able to easily step in and run things for her.

The venue is another very large theater and everything was set up backstage for us when we arrived.  We did ask our hosts to block off several rows of seats so that everyone would sit up front.  So many people were in the back at last night’s show that it made it a very difficult show for the comedians.

James had to drive back to the hotel to pick up the comedians and they got stuck in traffic.  By the time they arrived, our dinner had been delivered and they were able to eat immediately.  Adam was able to stay in his wheelchair and come directly into our Green Room.  The only “challenge” was the fact that the only restrooms were all the way in the front of the theater.  There was a wheelchair “lift” on stage left that worked so he was able to maneuver to the front of the theater using that.

It was again a small crowd – 76 people tonight – but the Comedians were so funny that it felt like a much larger crowd.  Made a huge difference having everyone sitting up front.  I think the comedians had as much fun performing as the attendees had watching them.  It’s never about how many people are in the audience and always about making sure the people who attend know how much we appreciate their service and giving them a little “break” from their daily lives….and, of course, most important, making the laugh!

Josh, Adam and Dewayne took photos with everyone in line and  we were back at the hotel by 10 pm.  We did find out that the reason  we can’t drink the tap water is because they found E.coli in the water!  I never drink tap water anyway,  but I have to remind myself not to brush my teeth with the water either.  The really freaky part is thinking about the water in the shower being filled with E.coli!

Ready for our last show at Camp Shelby tomorrow night!

Jude

 

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14TH, 2022 – CANCELLED SHOW AT CAMP SHELBY:

Well, this is definitely not the Road Report I expected to write tonight!

I woke up early to messages from Camp Shelby saying tornados are expected throughout the day and we needed to make a decision on whether or not to cancel the show tonight.

I couldn’t reach any of the guys because everyone was sleeping in since we did not have an early departure scheduled for today.  My thought was to hope the weather report was incorrect and we’d be able to hold the show as planned.  However Mark (our POC) was sending regular reports from the base weather station and things looked very bleak.

Once I was able to reach all the guys, everyone still wanted to try to do the show.  We moved the departure time for the comedians to earlier because it looked like the really bad weather was going to be between 2 and 4 pm.  As soon as we got the car service re-booked, I had a message from the base stating that everything around them was closing down and they expected the base to send their civilian employees home very soon.  Not only were they worried about our safety, but also worried that no one would be there to attend the show.

It was with a very heavy, reluctant heart that we decided to cancel the performance tonight.  Turns out, we definitely did the right thing.  Throughout the afternoon, more than one tornado went over Hattiesburg where Camp Shelby is located.  Then, at around 5 pm, the warning sirens and all our phones started blaring with a tornado warning for our area.  We all went to the lobby area and it was pretty frightening outside.  I talked to Lindsey at around 6 pm and she said it was on the news that a tornado had just gone over Gulfport but didn’t touch down, thank goodness!

Once the worst had passed us, we went to a restaurant in the hotel to eat.  We had planned to drive to a really nice restaurant but the forecast was still for severe weather through 9 pm.

Unfortunately, we did not have the option to reschedule the show to tomorrow as everyone already had other commitments on Friday.  Camp Shelby was convinced that they would have filled the venue and definitely want us to come back in 2023.  Hopefully we can accommodate.

Josh, Adam and Dewayne are departing the hotel at 5:30 am tomorrow morning for the airport so we said our good-bye’s tonight.

Special thanks once again to Gary Sinise and the Gary Sinise Foundation for making these special visits possible.  Seeing the joy and laughter it brings to the wonderful men and women serving is so rewarding.  We are all truly blessed to be a part of Gary’s mission in “doing a little more”.

Jude

 

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15TH – LEAVING MISSISSIPPI:

No problems for any of the group checking out of the hotel and departing on their respective flights on time.  I checked in with Camp Shelby and while they did not have a tornado touch down, they did have wind damage and were using the day to clean up all the debris. It could have been so much worse!

James and I had a connection in Atlanta and once again went into the Delta Lounge so we could work while we waited for the flight.  Landed Nashville on time and it’s now “balls to the wall” for e to get Christmas shopping done and then head out to Bahrain and Kuwait for “The Spirit of Bob Hope Variety Show”.

The shows at Keesler and NCBC were wonderful but still very disappointed that we didn’t make it to Camp Shelby.  The POC there called me to make sure we keep them on the list to reschedule in 2023.

Jude