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The Morning Brew with Chris Bennett
Ever wonder what really goes on at a small-town morning radio show?
The Morning Brew with Chris Bennett and Best Friends is your daily dose of real callers, big laughs, and unforgettable characters straight from QCountry 925 in Show Low, Arizona.
The Morning Brew with Chris Bennett
Festival of Trees: Giving, Games, and Good News
Holiday magic hits different when it’s local, generous, and a little bit competitive—in the best way. We open with two powerful good news stories: a first-generation college grad who celebrates by giving her mom the master bedroom after years of hardship, and a rescue dog named Rico who turns out to be a hero tracker, reuniting lost pets (and even a capybara) with their families. Those moments set the stage for something bigger we can all be part of together.
We welcome Marsha Grombly from White Mountain Helping Hands to share everything you need to know about the Festival of Trees on November 22 at the Show Low Elks Lodge. Picture a room lined with fully decorated trees, each loaded with gifts donated by local businesses. Your $65 ticket gets you a catered dinner, festive drinks, live music, a dessert auction, a silent auction, and $20 in raffle tickets to drop into the buckets for the trees you want to win. If your ticket gets pulled, you take home the tree, the ornaments, and the gifts stacked beneath. It’s a community party that funds real impact—supporting first responders and programs like Shop with a Cop—while giving you a chance to light up your holiday season in one unforgettable night.
We keep the fun rolling with a quick game of “Re-Gift It or Keep It” and a spirited round of holiday trivia with Paul from Beaumont. Along the way, we share why this event sells out fast, how businesses can turn it into a turnkey company party, and what it feels like to watch a roomful of neighbors cheer as winners roll out with a fully decked tree. If you’ve been craving the feeling of childhood Christmas—lights, mystery, laughter, the thrill of possibility—you’ll find it here.
Tickets are limited and moving quickly. Grab your seats at wmh.org, bring your friends, and help us support our local heroes. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review to help more neighbors find the show.
From the Horn Auto Center Studios, Chris Bennett and the morning brew. It is Tuesday, so you know what that means. It's taco about something good Tuesday. Uh Janine has a guest in studio, so I am going to be doing the good news all by myself. Here's our uh first good news story. The first one comes straight from the heart. A young woman named Anna Duarte just became the first person in her family to graduate from college, and she's celebrating that milestone in uh such a beautiful way. Uh Anna and her mom, Annette, spent years struggling with poverty and homelessness. And uh though through time and through every time, her mom stayed strong, doing whatever she could do to protect her daughter. So when Anna finally got her own apartment after graduating from Florida Atlantic University, she decided to give her mom the master bedroom. I'm not crying, you're crying. The first room her mom has ever had to herself in 64 years. Anna said she wanted to give her mother something that symbolized peace, dignity, and a fresh beginning. Now that's love, gratitude, and a reminder that success means even more when you can share it. And we are back for our second good news story on this talk about something good Tuesday. Uh, this is a tail wagging story that's guaranteed to make you smile. A stray dog named Rico was just two days away from being put down at a shelter in Portugal until a woman named Rachel Rogers paid$200 to save him and bring him home to England. That's pretty cool. But the story doesn't stop there. What she didn't expect was that Rico would turn out to be a real life hero. This little dog has an incredible nose for finding lost animals, and he's helped track down runaway pets, even a missing capybara, I think that's how you pronounce it, it's a large rodent, from a zoo. Uh, using just a blanket or a toy to catch scent, Rico has helped rescue more than 20 lost animals over the past decade, and Rachel says she's never been prouder. The dog she saved now spends his day saving others. Now that's what I call a positive comeback story. Those were our good news stories on this talk about something good Tuesday. Good morning. It's the morning brew with Chris. Who's this? This is Tony. Tony, Tony, Tony, Tony from Snowflake? No, Tony from Taylor. Oh, Tony from Taylor. I'm sorry, Tony from Taylor. Well, uh, you are about to win two tickets to our comedy show November 1st at the Sholo Elks Lodge. Compliments and Comfort Fit Dentures. You just gotta share some uh good news or some good vibes or something you're uh thankful for on this Talk About Something Good Tuesday.
SPEAKER_03:Well, I am thankful for my grandkids. I take them to school, I pick them up from school most days, and that's what I'm thankful for. I take them to their sports, and I guess that's good vibes.
SPEAKER_01:That is good vibes, and that's so awesome that you're such a great uh grandmother, and those grandkids sound uh very lucky to have you as their grandma.
SPEAKER_03:Right. So that's why I get to win these tickets, because I was just taking them to school.
SPEAKER_01:There you go, and you know what? So this is a 21 and over show, so you leave the grandkids at home, but I'm gonna throw in four uh movie passes to the WME theaters, uh not valid for special engagements if you want to take the grandkids out.
SPEAKER_03:Well, thank you. That's awesome.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, sweet. So Comfort Fit Dentures hooked you up in what radio station?
SPEAKER_03:92.5. You know it.
SPEAKER_01:I am so excited to have a guest in studio. I have Marsha Grombly with the White Mountain Helping Hands talking about the Festival of Trees event happening Saturday, November 22nd. Marsha, thanks so much for joining us. Tell us what is White Mountain Helping Hands?
SPEAKER_00:White Mountain Helping Hands is a 501c3 nonprofit, and we are kind of unique because we give back to the community through fun events, uh, like the Festival of the Trees, the Murder, the Murder Mystery Dinner Theaters. And we have just kind of found this little niche that that can help more than just a few people. We help our veterans, we help our seniors, we help our other nonprofits, we help our first responders, we help our veterans. I mean, it's it's just become this amazing organization that just does so much and it stays right here in the White Mountains.
SPEAKER_01:Yes, and one of my favorite events you did that I experienced for the first time last year is the uh Festival of the Trees. This year it's happening November 22nd. Uh, go ahead and tell us what is the Festival of Trees and who is it benefiting this year.
SPEAKER_00:Okay, the White Mountain Festival of the Trees. Uh this year Amazon donated the trees. God bless them. But local businesses sponsor Christmas trees, which they will come in and fully decorate and put hundreds, if not sometimes thousands of dollars worth of gifts underneath. We have a beautiful dinner this year hosted by the house restaurant. We have a silent auction, a dessert auction. The Tinkles are doing a point set of balloon pop. We have it's just a fun, fun time. Each ticket is$65 and comes with$20 in raffle tickets, which you put into the buckets next to the trees you'd like to win. And if Chris or Janine pull your ticket out of that bucket, you win the tree, the ornaments, and all those gifts underneath.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it is, and we're not talking about just any type of trees. These trees are one, they're decked out, they're amazing, but then the the you get the gifts that are under the tree as well. Last year, there was uh there was a bear hunt for one of them. Yes. There was uh there was a huge gun case.
SPEAKER_00:Uh oh, the the Rangers. I don't know what he did, but he took up an entire corner of the building. The tree was so massive, we had to we had to break it into thirds and live auction it off because there was just so much under there.
SPEAKER_01:It is so much fun, and I'm honored to be co-hosting the event with Janine this year. Yes. And uh so it's gonna be a great time. I hope to see you guys out there. Get your tickets uh today at wmh.org.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, and we are selling out so fast that if you don't get them early, uh we're just we're just gonna run out of space. Um, we we do need a bigger venue, and right now that doesn't exist, so the tickets are limited. But your business can even bring your employees. Your Christmas party is all set. The food, the drink, the prizes, the fun, it's all there. You have to do nothing but purchase a ticket.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, that's what we're doing for our Christmas party at Country Mountain Airwave. So if uh you're a business owner looking for something fun to do with the staff and want to give back to the community, go ahead and uh get yourself a table at WMH.org.
SPEAKER_00:We need silent auction prizes and we need desserts for our dessert auction.
SPEAKER_01:All right, check out wmh.org for how you could help in uh honor of the Festival of Trees and all the great gifts that are gonna be around these trees. I thought we'd play a game called re-gift it or keep it. I'll give you a hypothetical gift and you tell me uh if uh you don't like it, re-gift it. Or uh you like it, you'll keep it. All right, what uh here we go. First one a fruitcake shaped like a snowman.
SPEAKER_00:Oh no, definitely re-gift.
SPEAKER_01:Definitely re-gift. I don't like fruitcake for some reason.
SPEAKER_00:No one likes fruitcake.
SPEAKER_01:What about a candle that smells like bacon?
SPEAKER_00:No, because then it'd have to go make bacon. That's like that's like maple syrup. Anything that smells maple syrup, you start craving pancakes.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, so you're gonna re-gift that one. Okay, there you go. Uh what about a uh Christmas sweater with cats wearing Santa hats and it lights up and even meows when you touch the case.
SPEAKER_00:Okay, I'm taking that because we're gonna wear that to the festival. Heck yes.
SPEAKER_01:Do we wear do we wear funny uh Christmas sweaters? Oh, oh, that'll be fun. Oh, I'll I'll have to start shopping.
SPEAKER_00:There you go.
SPEAKER_01:All right, and last one a pair of fuzzy socks that look like tacos.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, those are mine.
SPEAKER_01:Those are mine, heck yeah. That was re-gifted or keep it.
unknown:Woo!
SPEAKER_02:And that's Bob Londe! Paul Beaumont says so!
SPEAKER_01:We haven't heard from Paul from Beaumont yet, so I'm gonna call him because uh Marsha wants to know if she is smarter than a redneck. Let's give him a call. Yay yay, buddy! Yay, yay! Why haven't you called? What's going on?
SPEAKER_02:Man, yeah, it's just 9.58.
SPEAKER_01:Well, that's not daylight saving. Well, it's eight o'clock here. I was I've just I've just missed you. I haven't been calling in.
SPEAKER_02:Oh bro, I just been I've just been going to blow, man. It's just me. I got one guy with a broke, I got one guy with a broke heel. I'm in the truck doing my thing. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Nice. Well, I have uh I have I have Marsha Grombly on with Whitemount Helping Hands. We're talking about this awesome event happening November 22nd at the Sholo Elks Lodge. It's the Festival of the Trees. And uh she's she's aware of Paul from Beaumont, and I really wanted to know if she was smarter than a uh a redneck. So I have some Christmas trivia planned. So I wanted to give you a call to see if uh you would like to challenge uh Marsha Grombley uh to Are You Smarter Than a Redneck?
SPEAKER_02:Well, I'll tell you what, ho, ho, ho, that's Pop X here and let's do this.
SPEAKER_01:It is now time for Are You Smarter Than a Redneck? Today we have an exciting matchup for Paul from Beaumont. It's not me, it's Marsha Grombly with White Mountain Helping Hands and the Festival of the Trees happening Saturday, November 22nd at the Show Low Elks Lodge. Tickets are$65. Helping a great cause here in the White Mountains. Get your tickets at wmh.org. It is now time for Christmas trivia. If you know the answer, say your name. That's your buzzer. First one to three. Are you ready? Okay. Ready, Paul. Let's do it. Let's do it. All right, they are multiple choice, but you don't have to wait. If you know the answer, say it. What color were Santa's robes before Coca-Cola made him red? Was it? Oh, there we go, Marsha. I believe they were green. Holy moly, she didn't even wait for multiple choice.
unknown:Woo!
SPEAKER_01:Woo, woo, woop! All right, here we go. Next one. Which of Santa's reindeer has the same name as the famous Valentine's Day character? Is it?
SPEAKER_02:Paul.
SPEAKER_01:Paul. Uh, Marsha uh Marsha. Cupid? Yes, it is Cupid! She's up 2-0. She's one answer away from being smarter than a redneck. Here we go. What is Frosty the Snowman's nose made out of?
SPEAKER_02:Paul, I know this one. I know this one. Paul, go ahead.
SPEAKER_01:Is it cool? No, no, it is not cool. Marsha.
SPEAKER_00:It's a carrot, wasn't it?
SPEAKER_01:It is not a carrot. It's a button.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, it's right. It was a car.
SPEAKER_01:It's a button. Alright. Alright, next question. What do people traditionally hang by the fireplace? Is it? Paul. All right. Marsha, it's either stockings, mittens. It is stockings. You are smarter than a redneck. Paul, if uh if you're able to get out of Texas, you gotta come join us Saturday, November 22nd for the Festival of Trees presented by White Mountain Helping Hands. And uh it's gonna be a great event. Tickets are$65, and it includes a cater dinner, dessert auction, festive drinks, live music, and a whole lot of holiday cheer. And 20 raffle tickets to go ahead and put in the trees of your choice to try and win. And you can buy more raffle tickets, and all the money raised goes towards the uh future first responders and several of our local programs like Shop with a Cop.
SPEAKER_00:We're helping our all all of our first responders this year.
SPEAKER_01:Heck yeah, it's gonna be fun. Get your tickets, wmh.org. I want to thank our guest today, Marsha Grombly, for uh joining me in studio today to talk about White Mount Helping Hands and the Festival of Trees events. Don't forget, it's taking place Saturday, November 22nd at the Show Low Elks Lodge. Tickets are$65 and available online at wmh.org. What message do you have for the community, uh uh Marsha, about this great event?
SPEAKER_00:Oh, just come on out, just have a ball, have some fun. It it's so nice. Just be just remember what it was like to be a little kid at Christmas and the lights and the excitement and the presents, and especially when you win the tree. I have seen grown adults cry when when they find out that their favorite tree is now theirs and they get to take it all home and and just have so much fun. Just remember what it's like at Christmas again.
SPEAKER_01:If you are in charge of the company Christmas party, I've just made your job a lot easier. This is what you should do uh with the whole team, and it's a giving back to the community, and there's gonna be uh a cater dinner, dessert auction, festive drinks, live music, whole lot of holiday cheer. You get raffle tickets, you could buy more raffle tickets and you have a chance to win a tree. So then another thing, you could just take the tree home and boom, the tree's up. You don't have to worry about that. Put it up, and you'll win all the great things around the uh tree. It's gonna be a lot of fun.
SPEAKER_00:We had a gentleman whose wife won last year, and he said, Nope, not taking it down. Put a huge trash bag over it, put it in the truck. He was ready to go.
SPEAKER_01:Heck yeah. Get your tickets today. They are$65 available online at wmh.org. Thank you so much, Marsha, for having me. Absolutely, and thank you to everyone that spent your morning with us here on the morning brew. For the morning brew, I've been Chris Bennett reminding you to be nice to yourself, be nice to others, and don't be jerk. And for the morning brew, we say bye.
