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20 Years of Partnership – Ranger, Dot, Blues & BBQ for Better Housing

The 20th Annual Blues & BBQ for Better Housing Festival is just around the corner!
Date: Saturday, July 29th, 2017
Time: 11am – 8pm
Location: Citizens Park, 24th Avenue and Chase Street, Edgewater, Colorado
Get your tickets today!

“We are celebrating 20 years of playing music to raise money for Habitat for Humanity of Metro Denver! That is super cool.”
You bet it is.
Husband and wife team Ranger and Dot are long-time volunteers and donors who have combined a love of music with a passion for service to support Habitat affordable housing programs. They organize the event Blues & BBQ for Better Housing Festival every year, which grew from a small silent auction to a blockbuster festival.

19 years ago, Ranger volunteered on a Habitat build site as a work-sponsored team-building event. That was just the beginning he says. “During that day of volunteering, I made a difference. I accomplished a project and had a tangible impact that made a difference in someone’s life. I wanted to do more.”

So, he got his band The Duke Street Kings to play at a bar and with a silent auction they raised $300 for Habitat. Every year the event grew, adding more bands, sponsors, and BBQ joints to become Blues & BBQ for Better Housing Festival in Edgewater.

Ranger describes the event as undoubtedly fun:
“We have local bands playing all day, donating their time and talent. Our sponsors are super generous. Our volunteers are incredible and come back every year to work at this event. Our vendors come back year after year. Following our 20th Annual Blues & BBQ for Better Housing Festival on July 29, 2017, we will have given $200,000 to Habitat for Humanity. That’s awesome!”

As incredible as the festival is, Ranger and Dot’s partnership extends well beyond fundraising. Dot explains what happens after every festival:

“Each year, following the festival, we have the opportunity to sponsor a Habitat home repair with the money we have donated from the festival. Our sponsors, our volunteers and our Blues & BBQ Board of Directors go out and work on the house that our festival was able to fund. That is very cool.”

Their active partnership with Habitat has led to some very special memories over the years. Ranger and Dot actually met and got married because of Blues & BBQ! As the President of the Chamber of Commerce for Arvada, Dot was his go-to person to talk to as the festival kept outgrowing its spaces… and the rest is history!

Their active partnership with Habitat has led to some very special memories over the years. Ranger and Dot actually met and got married because of Blues & BBQ! As the President of the Chamber of Commerce for Arvada, Dot was his go-to person to talk to as the festival kept outgrowing its spaces… and the rest is history!

“There’s live music all day in a beautiful park in Edgewater with incredible food and craft beers combined with creative vendors. There’s even a kids area to keep them entertained all day long. We put on a fun event.”