Smokin’ for Conservation

The 2nd Annual Illinois BBQ Bash brought together families, Union members, and BBQ from all over Illinois to raise money to get youth outdoors.

By PJ DelHomme

Where there’s smoke, there’s barbecue. That’s how union members, their families, and hundreds of attendees spent Father’s Day weekend at the Torstenson Youth Conservation Education Center (TYCEC) in Pecatonica, Illinois. The 2nd Annual Illinois State BBQ Bash was hosted by the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance to get families outside, enjoy some magnificent smoked meat, and raise money for the TYCEC.

Nine teams of five cooks arrived Friday evening to set up camp and their smokers. Their ages ranged from 17 to 70, from apprentices to journeymen. After receiving their meat, the teams worked all night long, smoking, trimming, and marinating. On Saturday, Union brothers and sisters, their families, and locals arrived to find music, a petting zoo, raffles, and plenty of smoked meat, cold drinks, and delicious sides.

“Everyone had a blast,” said Ryan Anderson, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) DC 30 business manager/secretary-treasurer. Two years ago, Anderson and Union Insurance Group (UIG) President Chris DeCaigny were looking for new ways to get the trades and their families together for a good time and a good cause. The inaugural BBQ Bash was a success, and they ran with it.

“The electricians hang out with the painters who hang out with the boilermakers,” said Anderson. “There’s a lot of camaraderie that goes on between the teams. The icing on the cake is that families are there, too.”

The 2024 Best BBQ Award went to International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 364 journeymen from Rockford, Illinois. Not to be outdone, last year’s BBQ champs, IBEW Local 364 apprentices, won the prize for Best Booze, and Best Booth was presented to IUPAT DC 30, who created an entire deer camp, complete with a fire pit, rocking chairs, and hunting photos.

“The whole thing was so much fun,” said Alan Golden, IBEW Local 364 business manager/ financial secretary. “We do so many fundraisers where you’re pushing your tie-up all dinner, but for this event, you can’t go wrong with a day of family, solidarity, and fun. Some teams are already preparing for next year.”

If 24 hours of smoke wasn’t enough to entice the surrounding residents, then the raffle prizes, fishing, and hiking certainly helped. USA Events Coordinator John Segura said that every kid who walked in got a pile of raffle tickets, and nearly everyone walked away with something. Out of the roughly 50 raffle table items, a third of those items were won by kids, and many of the remaining were given to kids by those who had won them. From smokers to trail cameras, more than 350 attendees got way more than a full belly.

A portion of the money raised from the barbecue stays on the grounds of the TYCEC. Funds raised at the inaugural BBQ Bash helped put a new roof on the lodge. This 750-acre facility focuses on teaching youths about the great outdoors and encouraging them to unplug from their devices. It features an 11,000-square foot lodge, a rifle, shotgun, and archery range, a fishing pond, and plenty of hiking trails. Being roughly two hours from Chicago and Milwaukee, many kids who visit the facility have never touched a fishing pole before.

“Everything here is set up for youngsters to learn about the outdoors,” said Segura. “They spend a day in the woods and come back to this great lodge. When you see a kid who’s never been fishing, they’re just enamored with the lodge. They drop their phone and say holy smokes.”

 PJ DelHomme writes and edits content from western Montana. He runs Crazy Canyon Media and Crazy Canyon Journal.