With each passing year, it becomes increasingly clear how much Chicagoans need first responders and the critical skills they provide.
To show appreciation for their dedication and commitment to all of us, the Chicago Wolves and Turtle Wax are teaming up to host First Responders Night on Saturday, April 23, at Allstate Arena.
Before the Central Division-leading Wolves face the Milwaukee Admirals at 7 p.m., the Village of Rosemont will host a
Touch-A-Truck event in the arena’s South parking lot from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Fans get the chance to learn all about the ins-and outs of high-tech police, fire and EMS vehicles and more. The Touch-A-Truck event is presented by Turtle Wax. All fans with a game ticket are welcome to attend.
The Chicago Wolves and Turtle Wax have respected the work of Chicago-area first responders for decades. The late Denis Healy and his wife, Sondra, parlayed their status as Turtle Wax co-chairmen and prominent members of the community to lend their support to the 100 Club of Chicago for more than three decades. The 100 Club provides financial support and much more for families of first responders killed in the line of duty and active-duty first responders throughout Illinois.
Wolves senior executive vice president Wayne Messmer long has advocated on behalf of first responders — a cause that became personal since being shot in the throat during a robbery attempt on Chicago’s near west side on April 9, 1994. Thanks to the immediate response by Chicago Fire Department paramedics Henry Hugel and Bill Steiner early that morning, Messmer received the initial care he needed to start on the path to full recovery.
“I just remember them being matter-of-fact,” Messmer told DNAInfo.com in 2014. “I was so vulnerable at that point, and I trusted them to do what needed to be done immediately and get me somewhere where they could do the right sort of triage. It was their calmness more than anything else that I’ll remember.
“There’s no question whatsoever, had I not been attended, I would have been out — dead.”
The Wolves and Turtle Wax honored local first responders by providing a special ticket to this game.
