About
Gene Potts Story
Gene Potts Memorial continues Geno's love of cooking, community, and helping others.
He did not have much to say, but when he did, he made you feel like you could do anything.
Geno's Legacy
Cooking, friendship, encouragement, and community support.
Geno's story is carried forward through the people he cooked with, the friendships built along the steak trail, and the programs created to honor what he hoped would continue.
Chapter 01
A Love of Cooking
Gene Potts always loved cooking. He went to culinary school to become a chef, learned all kinds of culinary skills, and especially loved desserts. He excelled at making desserts and got to use his creativity. He was over six feet tall, so seeing him make small, detailed desserts was interesting and delicious.
Chapter 02
The Steak Trail
Geno started grilling and competing in barbecue and steak cookoffs. Steak cookoffs became his favorite pastime, and he won several first-place awards. In 2016, the first year he competed, he was tenth in the nation. In 2017, he was fourth.
He traveled all over Texas to compete in steak cookoffs, met amazing people, and cooked tasty steaks. He was always helping others at cookoffs.
Chapter 03
Quiet Encouragement
He was happy for the cooks who beat him, would shake their hand and congratulate them, and if someone did not do well, he was right there with encouragement and advice.
If you knew Geno, you knew he was quiet. Once you got past that rough exterior, you knew you had a friend. He kept to himself and did not have much to say, but when he did, he made you feel like you could do anything.
Chapter 04
Support Along the Battle
At competitions, he would set up his tent in a spot by himself and cook his steak, and people would stop by and visit. When he was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2019, he could not believe how much support and friendship he had built along the steak trail.
Those friendships helped more than anyone knew as he battled cancer.
Honoring His Wishes
The cookoff and Get Kids Cooking continue Geno's legacy.
Geno talked about teaching kids how to grill all kinds of food, sportsmanship, the love of competing, and giving kids a place to have fun cooking. He did not get to make that happen.
He asked for two things after he passed: to have a steak cookoff in his name and to teach kids the love of cooking. Gene Potts Memorial continues both through the annual steak cookoff and Get Kids Cooking.