FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How did HMS300 come into being?
It was a response to the 300+ partying teens that broke into, trashed and vandalized a beautiful property that’s been our home over 30 years, in a wonderful small country town of Stephentown, NY. It was our get away, when I played for the New England Patriots, located just across the Massachusetts state line, in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains.How did you find out about the break in?
It was actually through my son, Brian, an Engineer at University of South Florida; he started receiving twitter feeds from some of his friends alerting him that a bunch of kids had broken into the house and throwing a major “PROJECT X” type drug, drunk, vandalism party. We have been living at our Florida residence for some time now.What was your response?
I was stunned basically, as we were literally picking up on all the broadcasts including pictures of this wild and very dangerous party as it was happening. We’ve since discovered through the Sheriff’s office that over 500 + teens were there. Needless to say, I blew right past furious to what really mattered the most – the lives of these kids that were out of control and basically in harms way.What do you mean by that?
What was broken or destroyed could be fixed. What was stolen could be returned; and I was pretty confident at the time that this would in fact happen; it’s a small town, everyone knows everybody. The bigger issue was the 500+ young lives were at stake; this was something more than teens doing stupid stuff, there was massive amounts of alcohol, drug abuse, drug deals, under age drinking, fights and sadly young girls who woke up the next morning with no recollection of what happened the night before; and 200 cars that scattered the instant the Sheriff arrived with drunk teens driving. The danger is in the thinking, or should I say the lack of it; it was reckless at a level that I had never seen before.In the aftermath how did you feel?
Gripped in parental greatest fear, of more children getting killed in drunk/drug driving accidents. I have already buried too many of our children’s friends. I’ve buried too many of my teammates, classmates and colleagues from college football and the National Football League. Again, at this point I was fairly certain the students and parents would step up and take responsibility, we certainty had all the evidence from the kids posting their conversations, pictures, all over the social media platforms.What was the purpose of building the website HMS300?
It was intended to be a very simple and fast way to communicate to all the students and possibly their parents; using the same flash digital platforms they used to plan this massive party that became a social media buzz across 15 different high schools, 4 colleges and 4 different states.The response was not exactly what you expected was it, can you tell us a little more about that?
I just thought the parents and teens would step up to basically get this handled, ultimately only a handful showed up, no one stayed to help, no parent offered anything; and a more than a few threatened to sue me.What was your response to this outrageous response from the parents?
I didn’t really get how they were going to sue me for reposting pictures that their child posted online. Sure it’s embarrassing and shame can create a great weight in your life; however there is no denying what happened -- the pictures sure provided the conclusive evidence that their child was guilty of crimes that included trespassing, breaking and entering, underage drinking, drug use, drug deals and destruction of private property.People made donations, how did this come about?
The donation idea came from one of the teens at the party. The online donation capability would allow them to give money without being identified and or being arrested. This to me was at least a first step in taking some accountability.At this point how much damage was done?
At first look I thought it was about $20,000; but after 2 weeks on the property it was quite clear the number was far higher; not to mention the loss of value to the property as a whole. There were ten glass doors and windows that had to be replaced; dozens of holes in the walls, all the carpets had to be ripped up soiled with liquor, beer, urine and vomit. It’s sufficed to say the amount is enormous; and that’s for the lawyers to handle. The focus of HMS300; has been on the gratefulness that no one lost their life; secondly is the accountability; basically taking a stand of that child’s greatness before its too late. All of us should be down on our knees thanking God that their child lived to see another day. And all of us may need to prepare for the next emerging dangers of social media. Children are being influenced, seduced, bullied, enticed to be lead down some very dangerous paths that end badly.What’s going on with HMS300?
We certainly had no idea this incident and the parents’ response would strike such a cord across the world. People were outraged and shocked as they witnessed the brazen social media conversation of teens out of control; and parents who completely failed at this very serious parenting moment. The global media showed up to cover the breaking news; it’s been a wake up call to me, that’s for sure; and I suppose for many others as well.Tell us about what you see as the future for HMS300?
We are now reaching out to the thousands of emails from all over the world to develop a vision, mission and an over all arching strategy for HMS300 to continue in satellites across the globe. In fact, I’m on the west coast now meeting with a couple young candidates who are passionate about taking a stand for the future of their peers. We will be looking for an appropriate executive director that can drive this mission with the same passionate resolve.What about the original 300? How are you helping them?
The first attempt was simply to expose the crimes and confront the issues with a plan of accountability, reconciliation and restoration vs. pressing charges. They were non-responsive. The second attempt was to address their parents; that was not received very well, they threatened to sue me. The third attempt to help was to address them all directly and globally at all 15 schools and 4 colleges; but the administration would not allow that due to the ongoing sheriff’s investigation. We aren’t out of ideas yet; the HMS300 team is growing and will continue on our efforts on the local level and national level.Why did the HMS300 news travel so fast across America; and in fact, around the world? I’ve been thinking about that for a long time now; well at least 4 months; and it probably has to do with the shocking indifference of 300 youth breaking in and trashing someone else’s property, bragging about it; posting it online and their parents and possibly the Sheriffs office turning a blind eye; with zero arrests at the party. That’s my best guess. It had nothing to do with the NFL; I’m not one of those famous guys. I’m basically a Dad and Grandpa.
Has everything that was stolen been returned? Only one of the items were returned mostly because we has social media evidence, unfortunately the other items that were stolen were not returned and they had tremendous value to our family, and basically irreplaceable. Obviously the damaged items were basically destroyed.
What has the impact been on your family?
We are still in shock over what happened. It’s still unbelievable the personal and emotional upset will be with our family a long time. This was our home. We have many incredible memories over 30 years that will be with us forever. We were so glad we had the opportunity to share it with so many families. We never imagined something like this was even possible. We weren’t brought up that way; we were taught to respect other people’s property and we were taught accountability. We were taught to care.What are you seeing for the future of HMS300?
There are some many people from all over the world that express interest in joining the movement. We are starting craft the best and fastest way to pull these folks together. They have tremendous ideas. We are looking to align with other community based programs that are dedicated to helping kids turn their life around. I see HMS300 being a platform for this important conversation and this movement to bring understanding, change and transformation in teens, parents and the community as a whole. (See developing Vision Statement)How did Breast Cancer relate to HMS300?
Sure. I had planned to be in North Carolina with my daughters (Yvette, Caitlyn & Kerry) for the annual Breast Cancer walk in October; unfortunately due to the events that occurred I couldn’t leave New York; so the idea came up to put up a donation link on the website, to join with so many around with world who are creating the awareness, support and momentum to end this silent killer forever. My mother did not survive her breast cancerHow much money was raised for Breast Cancer?
The donations went directly through their national link that every sponsor uses; so I don’t really have anyway of knowing. I’m hoping that it was substantial, everything helps. Every contribution is important.How can people get involved with HMS300?
Actually we are putting together some of the best ideas and looking at those right now. (Go to Help Team to find out more). Or by opting in right now we can start sending you different ways you can be involved; or ways HMS300 can bring attention and support to programs across the globe that share the same passionate vision of turning young lives around. We are looking to build the platform for this courageous community across the world.How can we actually reach out to Brian?
You can reach him directly on his private cell (813) 298-2890; the fast way to reach him is by txt; or you can email him directly at BrianHolloway@yahoo.com. He is scheduled very tight right now due to the Rose Bowl and NFL Playoffs. His schedule will clear up after the SUPERBOWL in February.