While the Milford Eagles and Norris Titans battle it out on the basketball court, local chefs will face off in the school’s first-ever Chili Cook-Off.
Milford’s Family, Career and Community Leaders of America chapter is hosting a chili cook-off with the help of some Milford Future Business Leaders of America students. The event will be on Tuesday, Dec. 16, at 5 p.m. in the Milford High School cafeteria.
Attendees will get to taste each of the chili options available, vote for their favorite and get a bowl to eat. Senior Abigail Gropp will announce the winner at the end of the night and present them with a charcuterie board from Milford’s own Golden Hour Engraving.
All profits will go toward the Milford Food Pantry. Milford FCCLA advisor Calyn Zegers said many of this school year’s FCCLA and FBLA service projects benefit the food pantry, including two food drives.
“I am really looking forward to seeing all the people show up and seeing all the donations that we can get for this since all the proceeds are going to the local food pantry,” Gropp said.
Gropp is heading up the event for her FCCLA Students Taking Action with Recognition (STAR) project in the event management category. Students create projects that fit in one of several category options and present those projects to judges at a district competition.
Those who qualify can go on to state and national FCCLA competitions.
“When I was younger, we would always have a chili cook-off for the fire department, and so that's kind of what gave me the idea,” Gropp said.
Juniors Jailey Roth and Staccia Johnson, both members of FBLA, helped make the tickets and advertised for the cook-off through posters and word-of-mouth.
“We'll be at the event, but kind of helping people figure out where to go and just taking care of all of the behind-the-scenes things so Abigail can be there and be present for everyone,” Roth said.
Gropp said she has learned more about the logistics of event planning through the planning process.
“I had to go through and figure out what I wanted to do, and then figure out how we could make it happen,” she said. “So, we just had to figure out the dates, the tickets, the chili people, what we're going to donate to, just kind of all that kind of stuff.”
Zegers said she is eager to see how the event runs. FCCLA and FBLA may make it an annual tradition, depending on event turnout.
“As their FCCLA advisor, I think seeing the girls that are running this, their success and their ideas come to life, just makes me so proud to see them working so hard towards something,” she said. “I’m excited to see just their excitement for it and the turnout and how well it goes, for their sake.”
The organizations are looking for more people to bring crockpots of chili for the contest. Contact Zegers at calyn.zegers@milfordps.org to sign up to cook chili or get help with pre-ordering tickets.
“I’m excited to be able to taste the different chilis and to see which one people like the most and who has the best cooking skills,” Roth said.
Presale tickets will be $5, and at-the-door tickets will be $7. Pre-sale tickets will be available on the Milford Public Schools Facebook page.
“This is just a new, innovative idea, so we're just really excited to see the evening’s fruition, because these girls have really put much of their free time into this project," FBLA advisor Shelly Mowinkel said. “FBLA and FCCLA are excited that the proceeds are going to help the local food pantry, especially during the holiday season and into the new year.”
