Help Me Hank: Help Me Hank! Red Sox Rain Out

Things were not looking good for the game. But just like the thousands of fans who arrived that Sunday to see the sox, Red vs. White, Gary and Gretchen Osterhout hoped the rain would stop.

Gary Osterhout
"We had a baby sitter. We were all set to go."

But the rain was relentless. As time ticked by, these fans saw their day at Fenway washing away.

Gretchen Osterhout
"It didn't look like it was gonna let up anytime soon."

They slogged back to their car that was parked in an underground garage at a special $12 game-goers rate.

Gretchen Osterhout
"Which we thought was a great deal."

But at the ticket booth, their parking plans were also rained out.

Gary Osterhout
"He said that we needed to give him our tickets."

Hand over the tickets? Big time baseball fans Gary and Gretchen knew the score, without them, they couldn’t get into the makeup game.

Gary Osterhout
"Why should the parking garage keep our Red Sox tickets?"

They argued with the parking guy, but he wouldn't budge.

Gretchen Osterhout
"You either give me the tickets and pay $12 or you can pay the $26 full rate."

Gary Osterhout
"So with the people behind us and everyone beeping, we gave him the tickets."

Why didn't they just pay the extra money and get a refund later? Well, yeah, they knew that was a mistake, but all that beeping didn't help. They had to make a snap decision.

Gretchen Osterhout
"So I got online and emailed Help Me Hank."

At first we were just as bewildered, so we called the parking garage.

It turns out they has to take everyone’s tickets because the bookkeepers need to know who’s getting a discount. When a game is called, they don’t take them, but Gary and Gretchen left before this one was formally canceled.

But here’s the save, they save all the tickets, and after our request the good guys at the garage tracked down Gary and Gretchen’s.

We hurried over to pick them up and then made a special delivery!

Gretchen Osterhout
"We’d like to say thank you Hank."

Gary Osterhout
"Thank you Hank"

And on a sunny Labor Day, not a cloud in sight, these major league fans got to reclaim their seats. Ok, the Sox lost, but even Help Me Hank can't help with that.

If you have a gripe with a parking lot charge, get a receipt and complain to the management. The person in the booth takes the money, but doesn’t make the rules.

(Copyright (c) 2005 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)