Barbeque to honor fallen Detroit police officer Loren Courts
BERKLEY, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - Ryan Turpin and William Butash are two of the co-founders of Berkley Barbeque. They have turned their love for grilling into food for the soul.
"We put 40 pork butts on and then we put 200 racks of ribs on and then we have about 3 to 400 pounds of chicken that we're going to be doing tonight," said Turpin.
On a beautiful fall day, the BBQ grilles are fired up. Meat is seasoned, and ingredients are carefully picked hoping to make this BBQ some of the best people have ever tasted.
It's important because the proceeds from these meals are going to benefit fallen Detroit police officer Loren Courts' family. He was tragically killed in the line of duty in July of 2022.
"We're doing a great thing for the Courts family," said Turpin. "It just seemed like the right thing to do."
The idea to have this fundraiser and others they have held came about when the friends got together to do what they like to do best, have fun and barbeque.
"It all started off with just us goofing around in the backyard, taking pictures of barbecue that we had done and it turned into doing fundraisers," said Turpin. "There's something about barbecue that brings people together.
They prepared to pack the space at the Berkley American Legion, where the event was being held, with the friends, family, and community members who want to help the family of officer Courts.
Some of those who volunteered have worked in law enforcement and know the pain of losing a brother in arms. And others just wanted to help in any way they could.
"We had 700 pounds of chicken donated from Wolverine Packing, and they gave us a really good deal on the rest of the meat," said William Butash.
Even through this tragedy, people still smiled and stood strong together.
