NORTHERN LIGHTS: Hammerschmidt helps event take in $435,000

— More than 700 people gathered at Fayetteville Town Center on the evening of Oct. 22 for a tribute to former U.S.

Rep. John Paul Hammerschmidt. The $200-a-ticket event raised $435,000 for the Brandon Burlsworth Foundation. Many in the crowd wore gold lapel pins shaped like Brandon Burlsworth’s signature black glasses.

“Congressman Hammerschmidt is such a giving person and an incredible role model for us all. He and Brandon both being from Harrison made it a natural and perfect fit for our first event of this nature. We are so pleased that John Paul allowed us to pay tribute to him for all his years of service,” said Brandon’s brother and the foundation’s founder, Marty Burlsworth.

Hammerschmidt represented the third district of Arkansas from 1967-1993.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta traveled from Maryland to join Dr. H.D. McCarty, Alice Walton, Thomas “Mack” McLarty and Jim Lindsey in paying tribute to Hammerschmidt. Burlsworth Foundation board member Stanley Reed was the master of ceremonies.

Barbara and former President George H.W. Bush and former President Bill Clinton sent recorded video messages praising the former congressman for his hard work and friendship.

The speakers highlighted Hammerschmidt’s contribution to improving transportation in the state including the construction of Interstate 540 and the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport.

He also initiated the law that preserved the Buffalo River under the protection of the National Park Service.

Hammerschmidt thanked the crowd, and in turn praised what the speakers had done for him through the years.

The foundation, started after Brandon Burlsworth’s death in a car wreck in 1999, supports children with limited opportunities by providing trips to Razorbacks and Indianapolis Colts football games, the team that drafted the former University of Arkansas standout. Through “Eyes of a Champion,” the foundation helps provide free vision exams and glasses to low income, uninsured children. The money it raises is also used to host football camps and for the academic and athletic scholarships the foundation awards every year.

The Burlsworth trophy was on display. It will be awarded for the first time in February to the nation’s most outstanding walk-on player at a Division I school.

Northwest Profile, Pages 43 on 10/31/2010

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