Pieman Bud Royer and his buddy, Doug Runyan, drove a van packed with 650 delicious pies to New Jersey and New York on a Thanksgiving mission of support for folks displaced by Hurricane Sandy. They arrived back in Central Texas on Sunday afternoon, exhausted but gratified by the success of their endeavor.
As we reported earlier this month, the owner of Royer’s Round Top Cafe planned was to distribute 650 pies and 500 donated $25 gift cards to folks who were spending their holiday in shelters after the devastation of the storm. He plotted a path along the Jersey shore and then to Long Island, stopping at Salvation Army shelters, soup kitchens, and, in once instance, at a Subway sandwich shop that was serving a big Thanksgiving meal.
The pie story attracted some national attention along the way, thanks to an assist from a segment producer at Austin’s FOX affiliate. “We were driving through Virginia on Tuesday when I got a call from a producer for the Fox & Friends national morning show,” Bud Royer reports. “Turns out someone at the Austin FOX affiliate had told the national desk about our trip and they wanted to interview us on camera when we arrived in New York. We had to be there very early, but it was a great spot
We’re also expecting video of the pie load-up and van departure as well as shots from at least one of the stops o the trip. We’ll keep you posted.
This article appears in November 23 • 2012.