Posted on 04/14/2006 5:37:45 AM PDT by Coop
Edited on 04/14/2006 5:42:21 AM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]
A two-year tradition for wounded war vets is about to go by the wayside. A downtown DC steak house that’s catered to injured troops every Friday night is about to close.
Fran O’Brien’s landlord [Hilton] is forcing out the steakhouse of the same name.
“We're not feeling very good about leaving and especially the Friday night dinner,” O’Brien said.
With the restaurant soon to close, so too will go a hang-out spot that troops have been able to call home while healing, if only for a few hours every week.
In a statement from Hilton hotels, a spokesperson writes: "this is a business decision whereby Hilton Hotels is exploring several options to utilize this space."
But the decision impacts more than just the business that's getting the boot.
A Hilton hotel spokesperson say they are -- on some level -- hoping to keep the Friday night alive without Fran O’Brien’s.
Ping
I like the suggestiong moving to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, though.
So do I, but I'd really prefer the status quo, for the sake of the wounded soldiers. That's why I'm riding this wild pig like a madman, or whatever it was Norm said. :-)
BUMP
And a bump!
1-800-HILTONS
Requesting you contact Hilton (see posts 8 & 9 for info) and spread the word about this lousy decision affecting our wounded troops. Thank you.
That's why I'm riding this wild pig like a madman, or whatever it was Norm said. :-)
---
YEEE and HAAAAA!!!!
We were poor dirt farmers, on dry years all our crop blew away.. we couldn't afford horses so the pigs had to do. ;-)
pop-gun aka squirt-gun banned.
Eagles up for our wounded servicemembers!
SOX
Good dig into the dirt behind the dirt. For one thing, SOX has forced companies to really bulk up their accounting departments, putting a further pinch on profits for activities that, at the end of the day, benefit nobody so much as they benefit those added staff. Yeah, it's great for creating "no value added" jobs, but America was better off without the added load; Enron and WorldCom notwithstanding.
Every Friday night for the past two years, there has been a restaurant providing free steak dinners to some of our nation's recovering wounded soldiers. The steak dinners have given our wounded soldiers a few moments' respite from their personal daily struggles and a chance to get away from the monotony of hospitalization.
Marty O'Brien and Viet Nam Veteran Hal Koster, co-owners of Fran O'Brien's in Washington D.C. have been digging into their own pockets, leasing space from a local Hilton Hotel to provide the once a week free steak dinners to our wounded recovering soldiers, many of them amputees, who are patients at Walter Reed Army Hospital and National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.
Hal Koster's generosity was borne out of his attempt to find a way to say thank you to our returning wounded soldiers.
Hal Koster remembers too well the welcome home he and other servicemen did not receive after service in Viet Nam.
Unfortunately, Hilton Corporation has served eviction notice upon Fran O'Brien's citing Hilton's desire to better utilize the space currently leased and paid for by Hal Koster and Marty O'Brien.
FReeper Hipaatwo has provided Hilton Hotel Contact information here.
Please phone, e-mail and/or fax Hilton Corporation and let them know that there is no better space utilization than saying thanks to our wounded soldiers.
Ping
Bump your post!
Beautiful job, bd.
Ping
Posted by Coop
On News/Activism 04/14/2006 8:37:45 AM EDT · 236 replies · 5,580+ views
I wonder if we can reach 6,000 views in 12 hours?
Just checked. YES, this is my sole ping from you!
GOOD going! 5,580 views.
HOT TOPIC!
My daughter has promised to write an e-mail tomorrow.
She does business with Hilton.
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