the night before Christmas. . . (or move-in to Lucas Oil). . .so many thoughts going through my head. . . kind of bittersweet. . . a year ago I was a volunteer as part of The Boston Crusaders Souvie Team, which brought to fruition an idea I once had about getting souvies OUT of a trailer and INTO a tent. . . .tonight I clean the box truck one last time as commander in chief of my own crew representing The Cadets with version 2.0 of the same idea. . . . there are many people I owe a debt of gratitude to. . . bear with me as I try to thank the most important players- all rockstars in my book! 1st and foremost, my immediate boss Sean King who believed in my ideas a year ago and offered me the job - a position I once had, but now, a little more mature, am able to bring what I truly believe is the way to do the concourse better than ever.. . . George Hopkins for buying into my crazy ideas, and letting me have full creative control over all things souvie. From the top of the tent, to the smallest of details in every item that we have sold - all once an idea, now come to life. I aspire to be a true representation of all the things that these gentlemen and The Cadets stand for - the relentless pursuit of excellence. . . .I am forever grateful that they believed in me enough to do the job. . . . a risk on their part that I never once took for granted. I owe a HUGE THANK YOU to my crew - Therrin Eber deserves immediate entrance into heaven for having put up with every emotion I have thrown into this project. The good days when we broke sales goals, the bad days when I yelled about electrical cords not being in the right place, and every moment in between. I put this guy through the ringer and he never once walked away from me, or the vision that he helped me create. A true gladiator in my book - job well done, Therrin, and I thank you. Jim Taylor sells t-shirts like noone else I have ever seen. His ability to talk shop with almost any and every person that came our way is second to none. He is well respected by many people, but none more than me. As part of Bostons team last summer he said he would follow me anywhere and for that, I am eternally grateful. Sure he can work my nerves, but not as much as I do his. Jim, youre alright! and I dont ever want you to think I am ungrateful for your constant belief in my chaos. Al Vavro is one of the biggest assets to any team but especially mine! His ability to make my little dog and pony show look like the centerpiece of Macys is something I was blessed and fortunate to have on the road this summer. You are the ultimate definition of a team player and I am overwhelmed with gratitude for everything you have done for me, and The Cadets. Matt Verburg spent a week with us on the road to learn the ways and means of my operation. From that week he spent with us I truly believe that I learned more from him than I offered. Its not just about the job, but the emotion that goes into flawless execution - he often showed me that I am up to something good here - a vote of reassurance when even I doubted some of my craziest ideas. Lauren Chappell recently joined us on the road and has been a breath of fresh air when the guys and I needed it! Level headed but sassy, she quickly took right to truck life for souvies proving that every crew needs a good mix of different personalities. I can NOT EVER repay any of my crew for their hardwork and continuous support of the madness that is Darren Delaney. I have been honored and humbled by the alumni of this exceptional drum corps - the accolades I have received from the likes of George DeOld 63-67, Mike on the cook truck who marched in the early 80s, Wally who volunteers at EVERY camp and travelled all over the country to follow his beloved corps, and of course the ICONIC Dave Shaw who is one alum that I aspire to be like - all have gone out of their way to make sure that I know that they have been watching and that I have made them proud. Their compliments are the ones that I will hold onto for the rest of my days BUT I wish each of them knew how I think THEY are the true definition of success. My printer, Robert Taylor and his crew at Marching Apparel dot com are just as much a part of this story as anyone. Bob and his crew have an uncanny ability to take the ideas in my head and turn them into the pieces you see in my display. I have absolutely NO design ability whatsoever. All I have is ideas and after several hours of discussion and often dozens of edits those ideas have become my show-pieces. I am grateful to have shared this journey with him and his team and look forward to what we have in store for the future. Trust me, weve only just begun. Id like to thank my guy - my rock, my center of gravity, the ONLY person on the planet who can calm me down and make me rational in a world of non stop chaos. I took this gig as a means to provide for him and he, yes he alone is my reason for living. Not ONCE in 11 years has he EVER given up on me. He talks me down from the ledge more often than any human being ever should have to, and is truly my biggest fan. I love you, Danny - you are my everything. To the other crews on the concourse - I am often in awe of the work you do and admire your abilities to do it. Folding T-shirts on 100 degree days in TX is not fun for anyone, yet we do it out of love for an activity that means so much to us all - qualities that I truly admire in each and every one of you (yes, you too Josh Sneed!) I walk the concourse in amazement of what each of you does and how you do it. We move in to Lucas Oil Stadium in a few hours - may this weekend be filled with fabulous performances and sales records that are through the roof. Be fabulous! Always look good! As always, I am grateful JUST to be a part of it. . . I will see you on the 50! Always, ~darren
Posted on: Wed, 06 Aug 2014 07:59:32 +0000
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