Truffula Tree - Winner of Gypsy Market 2011 Battle of the Bands

2011 marked a few firsts for Mineola festivals. Our Budweiser Battle of the Bands turned out to be a real hit with the crowd. Eight bands performed with the winner taking a $2000 cash prize in a winner-take-all event. During the event, we saw an amazing spirit of cooperation and unity among the bands. We had bands loaning each other instruments and equipment throughout the day. Our bands were truly happy to be there and be a part of the Gypsy Market.

Performing at the Gypsy Market were:

• Wesley Pruitt Band
• Gypsy Rebel
• Truffula Tree
• Last Call Outlaws
• Backroad Bandits
• Ramoth-Gilead and His Affiliads
• Archimedes, Watch Out!
• Thomas Wade and the Busriders

In the end, and after great effort to pick a winner, Truffula Tree from Tyler went home with the big prize. We would like to congratulate Truffula Tree and we would like to thank all bands who helped make the Battle of the Bands such a whopping success.

History in the Making

The October 8th Gypsy Market was the first event in the history of Mineola to serve beer. Budweiser was the main sponsor of the event. The planning committee worked diligently along with city officials, R&K Distributors in Longview, VFW Post 7523 and the TABC to assure that this was done properly, all laws were followed to the letter and that no problems related to the serving of alcohol arose throughout the day. This was a slow and, often tedious, process since there were so many questions and details to work through and no history or previous experiences to rely on.

No problems were reported. There were no fights, no disturbances or injuries and, even though we had a Mineola police officer there for security, not one single problem came from the sale of beer or wine. The police officer on duty was paid privately by Mineola Gypsy Market LLC.

100% of the profits from the sale of beer went to the Mineola VFW Post, a 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation.

Jacob Burrell Scholarship Fund

Jacob Burrell

In the midst of a very exciting day yesterday, the Gypsy Market was able to collect $481.00 to be donated to the Jacob Burrell Scholarship Fund. Jacob is our 15- year old Mineola student who was killed last week after a hit and run accident. His funeral is today at 2 p.m. at Sand Springs Church in Mineola. His liver, kidneys and heart were generously donated so that others may live. His mother said that when the heart surgeon removed his heart, the surgeon said ” this is the most beautiful heart I ever seen”. The 15 yr old boys family receiving his heart expressed their gratitude as he is so sick. Donations to the Jacob Burrell Scholarship Fund are being accepted, in lieu of flowers, at Capital One Bank in Mineola.

Planning for Gypsy Market 2012 will commence immediately and details should start to be made public after the first of the year.

If you have any comments, questions or ideas about either the 2011 or the upcoming 2012 event, please use the contact form below to communicate with us.

From all of the gypsies, THANK YOU to everyone involved. We are humbled by your commitment to support this event.

• Judge #1
  Mathew Brian
  Judge number one is Mathew Brian. Mathew is a writer, performer, and director. He spent two years at Panola College writing and performing for a variety show that toured the state of Texas. He enjoys music as a hobby, and has written and performed songs with a number of surrounding musicians. Mathew has been involved in various roles of the theatre for the past 15 years including writing and directing two original works here in Mineola.
• Judge #2
  Will Ross
  Judge number two is Will Ross. Will is the Director of Bands at All Saints School in Tyler. He attended TJC and UT Tyler where he earned his bachelor’s in Music Education. His primary instrument is percussion. Will is a regular of the theater stage as well and has performed in plays in Mineola, Lindale and Tyler Civic Theater in the past 6 years.
• Judge #3
  Sally McBurnett
  Sally McBurnett has been a private music instructor for over 25 years, in voice and piano. She received her schooling in music education at U.T. Austin and was a member of the U.T. A Capella choir. Over the years, she has been soloist for local choral and theatrical productions. Sally is currently singing and playing keyboard and guitar in a local praise band.
• Judge #4
  Kevin White
  Currently working as a graphics designer for County Line Magazine, Kevin is also the lead singer for Little Green Men, a popular rock band in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. He has been in the music industry for about 15 years. Kevin attended TCU on a music scholarship.
• Judge #5
  Kyle Davis
  Kyle Davis is a 17 year old keyboardist from Mineola, TX. In addition to his terrific playing, he is a soulful singer and talented songwriter. He is the first student in Charlotte Floyd’s 30 year history to receive a standing ovation during a recital. He has played alongside blues grammy nominee, Lucky Peterson. He has created arrangements performed by Van High School and All Saints Episcopal. He is a senior at Van High School. Listen to him tickle the ivories at La Waffalata on Saturdays.

The date of the Spring 2011 Gypsy Market is tentatively set for Saturday, April 9th. The planning committee is already working on making the next event even better yet. That is a difficult mission, but we are committed to bringing new and innovative ideas to the downtown Mineola Gypsy Market.

To all who attended… to all who exhibited… to all who performed… to all who had anything at all to do with this event, the planning committee would like to extend a huge THANK YOU. The committee is only a small part of this event. The real meat and potatoes of this event is you, the person who is reading this and who played an integral part in making it happen.

Below is a short video of some of the highlights of the October 9th event. Videos of the entertainers, hot dog eating contest and sponsors will appear shortly on their respective pages.

Again… THANK YOU MINEOLA!