Known for great drink specials, burgers and infamous bike nights, Deerfield Beach restaurant and bar Crabby Jacks isn’t afraid to be something else: fundraisers.

Beginning at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24, Crabby Jacks will be raising money for the Brewer family with contests, live music, drink and food specials, and giveaways. Among the many prizes are two tickets to the Dolphins/ Saints football game this Sunday (with a free parking pass), and a chance to win a ride for two on the Good Year blimp. You can also win a Jagermeister tap machine, a Jagermeister walking cooler, a Miller Lite grill, along with copious amounts of liquor bottles.

Michael Brewer

Just behind Crabby Jacks sits the apartment complex where 15 year-old Michael Brewer was set on fire by five teens on Oct. 12. Now in critical condition at Jackson Memorial hospital in Miami, Brewer is recovering from 3rd degree burns on nearly 80 percent of his body.

Since Brewer has been hospitalized for the past two weeks, his family has been at his side ‘round the clock. No one has been working and because of this, it’s been hard for the family to pay other bills.

Currently set up is the Michael Brewer foundation with Bank of America (click here for the Facebook page). However, that money is strictly for the medical attention of Brewer. This past week, the family received help from CBS 4’s Neighbor 4 Neighbor’s fund, where supporters donate to the family. Neighbors Crabby Jacks are looking to raise a minimum $1,000 for the Brewer family in hopes to ease their financial stress.

“The family is with the boy ‘round the clock, no one can work right now,” said Crabby Jacks General Manager Howard Eisen. “We just want to help the family out and show that the community is with them.”

Can’t make the event? Donate to the family by clicking here.

Join the thousands of supporters on Facebook by clicking here.

Interested in helping? Call Crabby Jacks at (954) 429-3770.

Ruthie Medina, then 6, with "Mami Zoila" - as she called her, and younger sister Raquel.

In the spring of 1988, 4-year-old Ruthie Medina was just happy to be an older sister to newborn Raquel. She didn’t think that one of her mother’s follow-up appointments at the doctor was going to turn into a breast cancer diagnosis.

Her mother – Zoila – was diagnosed at 35 years old, and then had a double mastectomy at 36. Ruthie doesn’t know how far the cancer had spread when Zoila was diagnosed. But in September, 1994, Ruthie and Raquel, 10 and 6, lost their mother to breast cancer.

On Saturday, Oct. 17, Ruthie, Raquel, the entire Medina family and friends are honoring their mother. They are also honoring those who have lost the battle, won the battle, and hoping that one day, no one will have to battle.

That Saturday, the 14th Annual Komen Miami/Ft. Lauderdale Race for the Cure will have new (and lifetime) supporters, and I’m proud to not only have the Fat Kids Club sponsor Ruthie’s team, El Rack Pack, but also actively participate. It’s the first race for the entire pack, but for Ruthie and Raquel, it was a long time coming.

Mami Zoila Medina, from her Passport, in 1982.

“My sister and I have always wanted to, but never have,” Ruthie says. “I can’t bring back my mom, but it’s [more] about making that run with my sister, my husband, and new friends to let the world know that my mother’s memory can live on in us to find a cure and it’s not too late.”

According to the Center for Disease Control, over 186,000 women were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005, with more than 41,000 dying from the disease. One in eight women will develop breast cancer – a number no one should be able to fathom as truth. As the second-most common cancer among women (behind non-melanoma skin cancer), I also have a personal connection to the disease, as do so many other families.

Seven years ago, I had an Aunt who was diagnosed with breast cancer. Through chemotherapy and its reactions, heartbreak and tears, and finally, relief and happiness, we were lucky to have a survivor. But then there’s Ruthie, who lost her mother when she was in 5th grade – when most parents are picking up their children from elementary school, not losing their battle with cancer.

Support our team during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The Fat Kids Club – in all its food cheekiness glory – is also happy to help others in need, no matter what the cause. In support of Breast Cancer awareness month, the Fat Kids Club hopes to help El Rack Pack make their goal of $500 towards breast cancer research and education. If you can pull out a dollar for a McDonald’s value menu cheeseburger, put it towards El Rack Pack’s team. The cheeseburger, my friends, can wait.

For more information about El Rack Pack’s mission, click here.

To join our group on Facebook, click here.

For more information about the Ft. Lauderdale/Miami Komen for the Cure walk, click here.

If you’ve been reading along, you may be familiar with South Florida’s lack of seasons. Besides sports, Floridians know that fall is arriving when pumpkins emerge on street corners, grocery stores and front lawns across the tri-county area.

In my search to satisfy everyone’s cravings with varied Fat Kid days of the week, I discovered that, oddly enough, there happens to be pumpkin recipes for every day I came up with. In celebration of the first Monday of October, enjoy the discovery of how Mexican food incorporates the beauty of the pumpkin.

Pumpkin Empanadas

…No really, they do exist.

I’m pretty much a fan of empanadas in most – if not all – fillings and shapes. In case I didn’t tell you before, I’m a big fan of Hispanic foods of all kinds.This pumpkin empanadas recipe comes from Cynthia Detterick-Pineda of Texas. But since that recipe is a little disorganized, try this one. They may be either really disgusting, or really delicious, but I leave that up to those who wish to take on that challenge. I’ll admit, I’m nervous about them…To be completely honest, they sound frighteningly amazing… especially this one. And apparently it’s more famous than I thought because this chick makes the pumpkin empanadas officially “dessert.” (She also has an entire blog dedicated to Mexican desserts.) Not like any traditional empanadas I’ve ever had before, which makes the curiosity that much greater. Who wants to take on the challenge? I’m always up for being the taste tester, I promise…

Pumpkin Tamales

My stomach told my head that this was a strange one, but pumpkin tamales? If you say so. They sound appetizing enough…

Other Interesting Mexican Pumpkin Discoveries

Smoky Braised Mexican Pumpkin
This lady tried Mexican Pumpkin Lasagna.
Pumpkin Flan? Really? Apparently…