Loud N' Proud by Blitzchick
7th Annual Commitment to Excellence Award Dinner
If one was at the Hilton Hotel in Oakland on March 6, 2009, and was surrounded by a bunch of people dressed to the nines, odds are they were attending the 7th Annual Commitment to Excellence (CTE) Award Dinner .
This is only the third CTE I have attended.
I have to say from my personal experience, they just keep getting better.
Though it has happened before, this was the first time I attended when there co-winners. This year the winners, as voted on by their team mates, were corner back Nnamdi Asomugha, the recipient of the 2006 Commitment to Excellence Award, and running back Justin Fargas, the recipient of the 2007 Commitment to Excellence Award.
The doors opened right about 6:00 pm for the reception. This was the time people had to get a drink before supper, have photos taken, mingle in general and, of course, to view and start bidding on the silent auction items.
There was a difference in the silent auction. Possibly taking a tip from a popular on-line auction business, there was a "Buy It Now" price on all silent auction items.
Another new event - raffle tickets. One could [purchase tickets and place the tickets in buckets for designated prizes. In this way, an attendee could choose what prize was wanted, rather than getting something random that wasn't really a desired item.
This year, as there were two winners, the Dinner Committee and Sub-Committee members went all out trying to get auction items. They did a great job!
There was a football autographed by fan favorite former full back Zack Crockett. Line backers Kirk Morrison and Thomas Howard each autographed their game worn cleats. Kirk Morrison also autographed a nice Raiders cap. A book entitled "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly " signed by the author , and Raiders legends John Vella and Rod Martin. Daryle Lamonica, the one and only Mad Bomber, autographed a football. There was a nicely framed photograph of the previously mentioned John Vella. There was an 8x10 plaque of Raiders legend running back, Marv Hubbard. There was a football autographed by Nnamdi Asomugha and Chris Johnson. Nnamdi also donated a pair of autographed gloves. There was a framed Sports Illustrated featuring Jack Squirek on the cover, one the heroes of Super Bowl XVIII, also autographed. Line backer Jerry Robinson autographed a football for the event, too. What event could be considered complete without a football autographed by Hall of Famer Fred Biletnikoff? Mr. Biletnikoff also had signed a 16 x 20 plaque with him and quarter back Kenny "The Snake" Stabler, who also happened to sign the plaque. There was a framed autographed Hall of Fame Induction photo of Coach Madden . Zach Miller autographed a football for the auction. Super Bowl XV defensive stand out Rod Martin autographed an 8x10 photo , which included a frame. There was a 16 x20 plaque autographed by Howie Long. The picture depicted was one where Howie had introduced himself up close and personal-like to Joe Montana.... during a game. Joe wasn't standing in the photo. There was plaque autographed by Tim Brown, showing his 1000th reception. The most touching item there, for me, was a large frame containing 3 photographs of Gene Upshaw. One was obviously one of the promotional photos, the head shot used in the programs and such. The middle photo was one of Mr. Upshaw in his stance from a game. This one was autographed. The third photo showed him speaking, when he was with the NFLPA.
And that list is just the Raiders items!
There were several wine items from various wineries, a gift basic of cds featuring Universal Records artists. a Spa gift certificate, a Swedish massage from Body Techniques. a teeth whitening certificate, a Jet Blue certificate for 2 round trip tickets anywhere Jet Blue flies in the continental United States. There were 6 games of bowling up for grabs. if bowling isn't one's style, there was available an evening of dining and bocce ball.
There were certificates from many dining establishments ranging from Francesco's to Postrio, Wolfgang Puck's restaurant.
There was a week long stay at the Tortuga Resort In Acapulco, Mexico.
Again, Cassara'a Fine Men's Wear donated a custom Italian suit.
There were items ranging from tickets for a Six Flags amusement park to golf for four to a sailing charter.
I think you get the idea there was a lot to choose from, and this was just the silent auction!
As the salad was being served, former offensive tackle and assistant line coach Robert Jenkins asked for a blessing. Before he did, he spoke of one thing that was hanging over the evening, the missing Marquis Cooper. Coach Jenkins emphasized that he was still just missing. He was praying for a miracle and requested a moment of silence so that others could request a miracle for him and his family. He then returned to his request for blessing of the meal.
With salad, which was not one's standard salad, but rather tomatoes stacked with cheese between the slices topped by some little leafy herbs.
The entree was the filet mignon and salmon with sauce. On the side were potatoes and greens.
Dessert was a chocolate mousse type thing in a pyramid shape with a dollup of whip creme and raspberry sauce to the side.
As usual, there were bottles of both red and white wine at the tables.
What was different this dinner, the live auction went on while we were being served our suppers.
Sandy Hochman was the auctioneer, and wow did he do a good job. There were times when two people, and sometimes three were bidding on things, and because the bids were all so close, with permission, (most of the time) , he offered the same auction item to multiple buyers. For instance, there was a framed autographed , game worn Nnamdi Asomugha jersey. It seems that there are going to be multiple winners, with some just waiting for the actual item to be prepared.
What I liked about the auction was watching Sam Williams, Justin Fargas and Ike Ekijuba bid on items. At one point in time Sam Williams was too caught up in a conversation to keep up with the bidding, and Sandy had to say "12 hundred to you, Sir!" about 5 times before Sam lifted up his hand to bid and went back to his conversation. I don't know how Sandy managed to get two Ultimate Raider Experiences up on the block, but he did. This includes going to camp, interviewing players and coaches, lunch , a gift bag including a sideline cap and t-shirt, with Silver and Black Productions providing a video of the entire day for the winner.
There were several autographed items, signed by such legends as Kenny King, Dave Casper, Mike Haynes and Jim Otto. One item was beautiful framed lithograph of famed quarter backs Tom Flores, George Blanda, Daryle Lamonica, Ken Stabler and Jim Plunkett. Oh, and it was autographed by all of them!
One thing thrown in at the end was a lunch with head coach Tom Cable at the fine eating establishment of In-n-Out Burger. This, also, ended up being a joint prize, with the two winners sharing the lunch with Coach Cable.
I can't say how much money was raised, but I am thinking if my rough math is correct, it was a good chunk of change.
It was announced during the live auction that Justin decided to forgo his selected charity this year, and he is going to create a trust fund for Marquis Cooper's three year old daughter. Nnamdi Asomugha's desginated charity is OWIN, Orphans and Widows in Need, founded by Nnamdi's mother. Dr. Lilian Asomugha. More can be found on worthwhile this charity and what it does at OWIN FOUNDATION One can also read about Nnamdi and what he does, not only for his mother's charity, but in the Raiders community, also.
Jarrod Cooper opened up the awards presentation. He started off by asking if those in the room thought that Terrell Owens would be a good addition to the Raiders. A unanimous chorus of "no's" and ""boos" came from the attendees.
Nnamdi wasn't there for the evening or to receive his award, personally. Former team mate Jarrod Cooper accepted on Nnamdi's behalf, thanking his mother as he looked lovingly down on the award. A lovely woman, whose name, sadly I did not get , went up and spoke seriously on Nnamdi's behalf. She spoke of how Nnamdi himself, and his three sibling, were raised solely by their mother. This is one of the reasons Dr. Asomugha founded OWIN.
One could tell she was proud to know the Asomugha family.
After talking briefly about all the wondrous things Nnamdi, his mother and the OWIN Foundation do, she also let everyone know she was also Nnamdi's real estate agent, so if any one was in the market??? This would be definitely considered a shameless plug, if only I could remember her name!
Jarrod approached the podium again to introduce the second winner, and the one that was there, Justin Fargas. Again he talked about how it was difficult being Fargas' team mate. How Justin would give his all on the field, and play , leaving Jarrod to wonder if this was the same guy with a sore knee and turf toe he saw limping around in between practices.
He spoke of the sweet girl at the Starbuck's in Alameda that just loves Justin so much, that Coop doesn't have to pay for his lattes and mochas because she thinks Coop IS Fargas.
He talked about how Amy Trask, (new) owner of the Raiders made him the highest paid special teamer. He teased her relentlessly whenever he spoke.
He made a lot of comments hinting he would still like to be in colors and on the grid iron.
One of the funniest things he did was talk about two coaches... he spoke of how former Coach Kiffin would address the team after a loss, first saying "Coach Cable is going to talk to you." He then gave his imitation of Coach Cable, which may have had a few words that would look like this "*&(%$$!" if this was a comic strip. Expletives peppered this imitation. He spoke of how this got the guys fired up, ready to maim anyone in the immediate vicinty. He followed that with an imitation of former Coach Kiffin. Let's just say that if the tone was accurate, it seemed like Kiffin was addressing a bunch of 7 yr old Pee Wee football players, rather than grown men getting paid big bucks to perform on the field.
Cooper made it clear that he believes Coach Cable can lead this team to wins.
He finally introduced Justin Fargas. Steering Committe for the Booster Clubs of the Oakland Raiders, Dave Laughlin, looking rather dapper in his tux, presented the award to Justin.
When he started speaking, I think it was obvious he was moved to have won in back to back years. He spoke of his struggles and his successes. There was a cat call from the audience, (I am thinking from a team mate, or former one?) asking how many yards he rushed for this past season, Justin's answer was a simple "Not enough." I don't think 2000 yards would be enough for Justin if we didn't win games.
Justin then started speaking about a young man named Johnny. Johnny attended a school on a campus not quite like other campuses. This school is for kids that have gotten in some kind of trouble. It helps them find the direction they need. It is run like a town and students hold positions and posts, based upon elections. Johnny was mayor. I say 'was' because he is on his way out. The funds from last year's award dinner, that were in the Justin Fargas Foundation, are going to Johnny to help him go to college. Johnny's current plans are to start off at Chabot College, where he believes he is going to major in psychology. I have no idea what difficulties Johnny may have had, nor did I ever ask in any of my conversations with him. He has changed the direction his life had been taking. He was thoroughly amazed by all the support he was receiving from the attendees after the awards and speeches. He seemed to find it difficult to believe so many were saying how proud they were, offering advice, and the like. He appeared to be genuinely moved.
Jim Otto spoke about the players that received the awards. He spoke about them with a great deal of respect. He talked about how one heard about both their on field and off field accomplishments. How they both worked within the community. How they tried to make things better. How they perservered through times that could have broken them. How they earned what they have achieved. He could understand why their team mates awarded them the Commitment to Excellence, not just as players, but as MEN.
Coach Cable spoke about the award winners. and about the team. I think he is excited to be the head coach with players like Fargas and Asomugha on his roster. I can't really talk about much of what he said because, to be honest, I was carried by the passion with which he spoke. Heck, I felt like I could take the field after hearing him talk.
So to give you a run down of some the VIPS....
George Atkinson and Rich Walcoff were there as Co-Masters of Ceremonies. Coach Cable was there with his beautiful fiancee. Coach (Lionel) Washington was there. Coach Willie Brown was there smiling. Coach Kelly Skipper was in attendance. I already mentioned Coach Washington was making an appearance, his first one I think after being hired by the Raiders.
Former Players included Dave Casper, Raymond Chester, Jarrod Cooper, Robert Jenkins and Jim Otto. Morris Bradshaw, who currently still works for the Raiders, was also there. Lionel Washington fits here, too!
Current players included Justin Fargas, Sam Williams and Ike Ekijuba.
Justin had his usual posse of people, which include his equally famous father, actor Antonio Fargas. (Huggy Bear from Starsky and Hutch)
The evening ended with DJ music by Dino Sandoval, "Raider Chicano".
All I can say is by the end of the evening, my feet were aching. I had a smile on my face, though. That Zack Crockett ball managed to find its way into my house where it accompanies the game worn shoe autographed by both Zack and Justin Fargas.
There were several first time attendees. I don't know who came the fathest, but I am thinking that the couple from Washington DC edged out the couple from Atlanta. They all seemed to have a wonderful time.
That pretty much wraps up the evening for me, and I am hoping it was as successful as it seemed to be!
As ever,
Win, lose or tie, RAIDERS til I DIE!
BlitzChick
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Publisher Note: For More Info on the Commitment to Excellence Dinner got to Steering Committee for the Boosters Clubs of the Oakland Raiders
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