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…