May 7, 2016 at 1000 hours, the San Francisco Bay Area Stack hosted their Call to Arms event. It was a rainy and dreary day which would put a damper on any outside activities. Prior to the event, Anthony and Randi spent many hours prepping the backyard with new mulch and laying down artificial grass to better accommodate guests. However, this did not deter the event from being successful. The weather did help keep the house cool for all the guests.
Shortly after 1100 hours, the first guests began to arrive. As more guests arrived ranging from little kids to adults, the party began to liven. The kids played on the Wii U game Pikmin 3, a huge hit for them. The adults mingled and snacked on chips and salsa. Randi prepped and cooked all the food for the event. The meals included: Burgers, Hot Dogs, Chicken, Pasta, Sliced Baked Potatoes, Steak strips, watermelon, apricots, cherries and other assortments. As the meal was being BBQed, a few special guests arrived from the Jamaica Queens Stack. Ethan the Minor Gamer and his family came all the way from the East Coast and took part in our Call to Arms celebration. Ethan and Sam immediately teamed up to play Call of Duty Black Ops 3.
After devouring the lunch meal, several of the adults moved into the gaming area to play JackBox, a collection of hilarious trivia and drawing games, and many laughs were had. StackUpRex arrived to take photos with some of the guests (a few did not want to be photographed). For those who do not know, StackUpRex is the official mascot for The Stacks. He loves to go bowling and stand on street corners holding “Support the Troops” signs. He also enjoys running from little kids and being around for events. He goes on vacations sometimes to waterfalls and visits with everyone who cares to see him.
Shortly thereafter, Mathew, one of the newest members of the San Francisco Bay Area Stack, arrived with Rock Band 4 gear in hand. It was time to rock out with a full set of RockBand gear. Joshua set out to establish dominance on the vocals while Mathew slapped the bass to match. Anthony attempted to play the guitar and was mediocre at best. (:P) Asher, Ethan the Minor Gamer’s younger brother, killed it on the first time playing the drums racking up awesome amounts of points.
Eventually the JackBox was picked up again and it was time to win some game codes. Tanya, Garrett, Josh and Brendan all won codes for either Ark or Killing Floor 2, two very excellent games, that I am sure they will enjoy. Tanya proved to be the most creative and thus the winner of many rounds of JackBox that she also won a “Happy Poop emoji” T-Shirt.
All in all, this was the most successful event to date for the San Francisco Bay Area Stack. Everyone in the Stack took part in making this event happen and be what it was. We all had a great time and felt accomplished when the final numbers settled in. 7 brand new members were added to the San Francisco Bay Area Stack and they were able to raise $500 to support Veterans and the troops who do an amazing job protecting the American way of life. I am personally very proud of the members of the San Francisco Bay Area Stack for answering the Call to Arms and giving back to those who give their all for us.