AUTHOR: Jerry "Jet" Whittaker
TITLE: Poker run to help Kauaâ?~i guardsmen
DATE: 2:41 AM
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BODY:
WAIPOULI &#226;?&quot; Brendan Melendes is only 4 years old, but he had a lot of<br>reasons to be excited. At the top of the list was the shiny green motorcycle<br>that stood off to one side of the door leading to Two Wheels in Waipouli.<br>This was followed by learning of the upcoming Street Poker Ride that is<br>being coordinated by Tom Leighton of Two Wheels. &#226;?oHe&#226;?Ts been in a poker<br>run before,&#226;? Brendan&#226;?Ts mom said. &#226;?oHopefully, he can do part of this<br>one, too.&#226;? Two Wheels, in conjunction with the Kaua&#226;?~i Harley-Davidson in<br>Puhi and the Waimea Big Save, will be hosting the Street Poker Run on March<br>18 with the proceeds being turned over to the Air and Army National Guard,<br>Leighton said. Check-in is at 8:30 a.m. with the ride starting at 10 a.m.<br>from the Two Wheels shop across from the Foodland store in Waipouli.<br>&#226;?oThere will be national guardsmen in uniform, and one of them will be<br>doing the drawing for the grand prize of a trip for two to Las Vegas,&#226;?<br>Leighton said. &#226;?oBut the crew is out hustling for even more prizes.&#226;?<br>Leighton said he found out there are several Kaua&#226;?~i guardsmen who are in<br>the process of being shipped out, and wants to make sure they have their<br>CARE packages of saimin, phone cards and other goodies local boys love.<br>&#226;?oWe want a lot of people to come out,&#226;? Leighton said. &#226;?oIt&#226;?Ts the<br>first Run of the year, and it&#226;?Ts for a good cause. Our car and truck<br>friends are welcome, too.&#226;?<br>For non-motorcycle riders, Leighton said they will have coffee and doughnuts<br>in the morning, and around lunchtime, the menu will change to include hot<br>dogs and soda. Additionally, the grand prize for two to Las Vegas is through<br>a donation that gets you a ticket. Leighton said the certificate for the<br>trip doesn&#226;?Tt limit the winner to Las Vegas. There is a provision the<br>winner can change the destination to either San Francisco, San Diego, Reno,<br>or even Orlando, Florida. Leighton said there is the option to extend the<br>trip from its three-night, two-days to a longer period.
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