HOUSTON — Houston Police Department officers and Houston Fire Department firefighters went head-to-head on the baseball field Monday night for their annual "Battle of the Badges."
Friends and family members showed up to Reckling Park on the Rice University campus to watch and cheer. The annual game happens each year on 9/11.
The money raised will go to the family of HFD firefighter Chase Fleming, who died in an off-duty vehicle crash in August.
Money will also go to Harris County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Joseph Anderson, who was shot during a traffic stop last month. Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said Anderson was released from the hospital this week.
Family members and first responders said fun times the this game are essential for those who routinely put their lives on the line for their jobs.
"I didn’t have the fear. My father was HFD," HFD Station 17 rehab chauffer Lisa Havlice said. "This is kind of what I know but this it’s just part of the job."
The game’s first pitch was thrown by Billy Forney, who was in Tower One of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.