The rain held out to the very end for the 45th Annual MFD Up North Picnic that was held on July 8, 2026 with 129 people in attendance. St. Germain supplied a ladder truck for our yearly photos. Tom McKale on bagpipes played Honor the Fallen with Bruce Braidigan reading the names of the 31 deceased members with Marvin Glass ringing the bell for each member. The names of the deceased spouses were also read. Tom closed with Amazing Grace.
A 50/50 Raffle to benefit retired MFD HEO Scott Navarrette who is battling cancer was held and Andy Karow was the winner. Andy donated his entire portion back to Scott who was very grateful. Harold Ballmann and Jim Rinelli were the winners of the Horseshoe Tournament. Leslie Berendt was the first woman to win the Closest to the Pin Contest! Leslie donated her winnings back to Scott also. Nice job Leslie and Andy! A special thank you to the Emergency Response Specialists, who donated the beer and Terry Lucas for donating his fresh homegrown produce that was raffled off along with other prizes.
Thanks and prayers to all the fallen Military, Fire and Police personnel that have made the ultimate sacrifice for all of us and our Great Country.
Mike and Linda Ballmann would like to thank everyone in attendance for keeping this MFD tradition alive through their generous donations and all the volunteers that made this picnic a success.
Mark your calendars for next year’s picnic, July 14, 2027. Keep spreading the word of this marvelous event. Send your email address to Ballmann61@protonmail.com to get all picnic updates.