Three Garland Police Department officers will lace up gloves and step into the ring next month for the 25th annual Guns & Hoses Boxing Tournament, an amateur fight night pitting local law enforcement against firefighters to raise money for the families of fallen first responders. The event lands at the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen on Saturday, September 12, with doors opening at 5 p.m.
According to a Garland Police Department announcement, the three Garland officers competing this year will represent the department against firefighters from across North Texas in three-round amateur bouts. The tournament, held at the arena at 200 E. Stacy Road, is organized by the Guns & Hoses Foundation of North Texas, a Garland-based nonprofit. Tickets are available through the foundation's website, gunsandhosesnorthtx.org.
This year's fight card carries extra weight as the 25th installment of the tournament, a milestone that frames the 2026 event as a quarter-century of North Texas police and fire departments trading punches for charity, according to Visit Allen. The tournament has grown from a local rivalry night into a regional tradition, with the first bout of the evening scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m., per the Allen Community Calendar.
Why the Foundation Fights for Fallen Families
The Guns & Hoses Foundation of North Texas was established in 2002 to support the families of peace officers and firefighters lost in the line of duty, operating out of its headquarters on Forest Lane in Garland — a direct local tie that explains why the Garland Police Department sends fighters into the ring each year, according to the foundation's own site. That proximity also helps explain the department's continued participation, since Garland serves as the organization's home base.
The foundation's mission carries real urgency behind the lighthearted rivalry. It pledges to deliver immediate monetary assistance to surviving families within 48 hours of a first responder's line-of-duty death, along with ongoing holiday support and dedicated funds for dependent children, per Birdease. Since its 2002 founding, the foundation has provided financial assistance to 79 families of fallen emergency personnel and supported more than 80 dependent children.
That benevolent fund reaches far beyond Garland. The foundation's coverage spans 16 North Texas counties — including Dallas, Collin, Tarrant, Denton, and Rockwall — encompassing more than 20,000 sworn peace officers and firefighters across 60 police departments and 300 fire departments, according to footage cited by the foundation. All net proceeds from the annual boxing tournament flow directly into that fund, which supported organizational operations generating $308,725 in total revenue in 2024, according to Cause IQ.
A 7,000-Seat Arena and a Youth Boxing Connection
The Credit Union of Texas Event Center, a City of Allen-owned venue built for $52.6 million in 2009, can seat up to 7,000 spectators for arena sports and fight nights. The venue regularly hosts more than 100 public events a year, giving the Guns & Hoses card a sizable stage for its silver-anniversary edition.
Beyond survivor relief, the foundation also funds community youth programs, including financial support for inner-city boxing initiatives such as the Garland 9th Street Gym project, per Cause IQ's nonprofit filings. It's a detail that ties the charity fight night back to the sport itself, extending the foundation's reach from grieving families to young boxers training in Garland gyms.
Garland's participation in the tournament is not new. In 2024, Hoodline covered a Mansfield officer's fight-night win at that year's edition of the tournament, underscoring how departments across the metroplex, not just Garland, send fighters into the ring annually for the cause.
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