BATTLE OF THE BADGES

BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

Fire beats Sheriffs in the inaugural Battle of the Badges

“It is for a good cause, it is a lot of fun and we’re going to send those hosers home. I’m sorry guys, but you are taking on these lawmen over here,” Hays County Sheriff Gary Cutler said.

The only thing more exciting than the ball game was the trash talk as Wimberley Fire and Rescue beat the Hays County Sheriff’s Office in the inaugural Battle of the Badges softball fundraiser 14-7.

Wimberley Fire and Rescue came into the game confident as well.

“I love our officers so much,” Christopher Robbins, assistant fire chief, said. “We have such a great connection with them, but when it comes down to it, we’re playing in Wimberley at the Wimberley Texan baseball stadium. This rivalry is going to get hot, and we’re going to make sure that they feel the heat that we have got going on today. I’m playing to win.”

Hays County got on the board first with a score in the first inning, but the talented Wimberley team responded big. However, the excitement on the field wasn’t limited to just the game. At one point, a pretend streaker – still fully clothed – took to the field to be chased around the diamond by a uniformed officer. The scene could have only been improved by the comedic “Yakety Sax” theme song from Benny Hill that seemed perfectly appropriate for the lighthearted moment.

The game is also one of the few where it isn’t of- fensive when half the audience gets up and leaves in the middle of the game. While both crews on the field were off duty, some in the stands were part of the response crew should first responders be necessary in the Wimberley Valley. Sure enough, an emergency call went out and first responders in the stands leapt to their feet to rush to the scene.

In the end, Robbins reminded everyone what was really at stake. This was a fundraiser for both the American Cancer Society and the Wimberley Youth Sports Association. “This is an important opportunity for us, because it really shows our community what it means to get to know your first responders,” Robbins said. “It's also important to us, because we've known a lot of people that have recently been lost to cancer. A dear friend of ours [and Wimberley Firefighter] Travis Marr died back in 2022. My mom was a lieutenant in the fire service. She passed away last October, and so just to get to raise money for things of that nature, as well as put money back into our community to support our children, make sure that we have a healthy environment for them to develop in and just grow and learn what teamwork and integrity is. Everything that this is is what we believe in as Wimberley Texans.”

The amount raised during the event was not totaled by the time of press; however, both entities talked about making Battle of the Badges a new annual event.