What the WKC means to me!

[dengland]

I know it was kind of a rough night for a few of the members here at WKC and so I felt the need to share with everyone what this forum means to me.

I lost my grandfather, that my son and I were named after, on 3/23/11. He grew up as the youngest child of 9 (7 boys and 2 girls) on a farm in southern Missouri but his family valued education and he followed in his brothers and sisters footsteps which majority went into education. After receiving his Doctorate in Biology from Texas A&M University he went on to become a Biology Professor for the local university until he retired.

After retirement as a way to connect to his roots he got into restoring Farmall Cub tractors and joined a forum that he became very involved in. That forum was similar to the WKC as its members, while each member was unique in their opinions (ie. whether the tractors should be restored to showroom quality or the tractors earned those battle scars, whether or not the parts should all be vintage, and lord forbid someone paint their "RED" Farmall Cub pink for their wife or daughter) they worked together providing information and parts for each other; some of the times for free and other times at a price.

While I have not been a member of the WKC for long and am still looking for my first rescue I still feel that everyone here has allowed me to connect to my grandfather in a way that I would have never thought was possible. I want to thank everyone here for what all you do and I look forward to what the future holds!

[namtrag]

No way can I make a post that meaningful and deep, but I also recently came to the WKC.  I had shown an interest in the BBQ Brethren Forums in learning how to smoke things, particularly, I was looking for advice on a good first smoker for a total novice on a budget.  Some guys over there said that the Weber Kettle was the best choice for someone to learn on, and recommended that I could find a good used one pretty easily, and also to come check out the WKC forum.

In the short time I have been on here, I have truly enjoyed the camaraderie, the helpfulness, and the positive attitude the members have.  While I am sure there is friction at times, I find it quite refreshing in this day and age that there are guys that go above and beyond to help and share with one another in what many would consider to be a silly hobby.

While I may never collect a bunch of Webers, I do feel the pull to do so, and am becoming slightly obsessed with it! I am sure I am not the first to be sucked in.

Anyway, thanks to all who contribute so much knowledge and encouragement to the other members.

[JDD]

Very cool thanks for sharing.

[Troy]

What a great post! Thank you so much for sharing!!

[1911Ron]

Thanks for sharing your story.

[MrHoss]

That is great dengland - meaning in life must be sought after and cared for.  Thank you for adding that.

My love of Webers is deep seated.  Dad had a old wood shelved red Genesis.  He loved that thing, cooking as often as his busy schedule would allow for.  When he got a Vermont Castings he gave the Weber to my brother in law just down the road.  I said he was nuts and less than a month later he was regretting it.  While Dad did not have the passion for outdoor cooking I do he made up for it inside:



That's my sister past Dad.  He is making bacon mushroom sandwiches here.

Dad's been gone for almost 4 years now.  I miss my best friend something fierce.  While outside tending a cooker the long hours it sometimes takes my thoughts often revolve around the man.

My fourth cooker was a used black OTG and I knew I loved it the first cook.  When I hit 3 kettles I signed up here.  Since signing up I have had 4 members go out of their way for me in a big way.  One member offered to pay for shipping from the States to me here in Canada for a kettle - wow.  Another member has gotten parts and had a kettle delivered to his house to help save me money....he has also given me free parts and food.  Another member sold me a redhead at a VERY reasonable price and packed the beauty up WAY beyond securely. And a final member has acquired and given me for free a red mastertouch - I paid for shipping but payment for the kettle was refused.

So that is 4 for 4 on the good guy tabulator and I bet it could easily stay batting 1000 for some time.  My Dad would like you guys.

Troy - Thank you for making this site possible. 
The folks that help Troy out - Take care and keep it up.
The 4 fellas I spoke of above but did not name - Big thanks and hope you understand why I left you unnamed.

[SixZeroFour]

How amazing is this site and community?!

I really appreciate each of you sharing your stories! It's wonderful to see how many different ways these kettles remind people of memories past and almost become a member of the family themselves. Think how many stories have been told and memories made while in the presence of a Weber kettle!

[coldkettle]

This is great!  My dad cooked on a gas Sun Beam grill, hates charcoal!  He is a man of convince..But he knows how much I love my grills and has helped me acquire one of mine.  He LOVES the food I serve from mine!   I hope my kids remember all the time we spend outside around the grill.  Great subject guys!

[coldkettle]

I was just appreciating the post.  Saw this and figured something else was going on and looked into it. 

[jmeier64]

From what I remember about growing up we did not have a weber. It was a structo. But learning to grill with my father was a big deal. I passed the tradition on to my daughter who probably like me at that age isn't fully appreciative yet. I didn't even ever cook on a Weber until 3 years ago when I decided to ditch my big box SS gassers I had been uing for so long and go charcoal. i decided on Weber without a second thought based on quality, value, and reputation. I had no clue as to the history of the grill or the company.

I came to the site ffrom searching on google for kettlepizza and using it. Since I have learned so much. I also have caught a decent case of weberitis. I am not what you would call a big collector, but I really appreciate the vintage items, especially the stuff from the sixties.

So far what has been cool for me is within a few hours of my welcome post I started chatting with the local wkc crew in MN. Within two weeks I had aquired 3 Webers I really didn't need lol. A Genesis which is a sweet gasser and two SJs, now thanks to all of this I have a WSM mini and a soon to be picked up 14.5 WSM that Saxart agented for me. I have aquired to pieces for cooking for a great deal from tow grill fellas here as well as a bunch of knowledge and personal meetings with many great guys. Even though it is online mostly, it truly is a "club" to me. One I am proud to be a member of. We all share the passion for BBQ, grilling, and Webers and other classic grill items wether it be a casual cooking collector like myself to the big time collectors like Harris, Troy, and so many others. What a great place