Monday last day to get tickets to Taste of Wayne
By Anessa Myers
Published in News on August 12, 2007 2:00 AM
The aromas of area restaurant favorites and specialites will start to fill the air before the Taste of Wayne County begins on Tuesday from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
With everything from pickles to pizza and Coca-Cola to chicken salad, the vendors slated to serve at the United Way of Wayne County's annual kickoff are offering something for every taste.
Vendors are still coming in, but the list currently includes Mount Olive Pickle Co., Coca-Cola, Mission Foods, Wayco Ham Co., Steve's Pizza Place, Murphy's Place, Lane Tree Golf Course Grill, Pepsi Bottling Co., Culligan Water, Franklin Bakery, Krispy Kreme, Wing Zone, Pizza Inn, Coldstone Creamery, Wayne Memorial Hospital, Brooklyn Pizzeria, Ham's Restaurant, Bonfire's Tortilla Bar, Delta Rib Shack, J J Ashley Bakery and Gourmet Foods, Levy's Soul Cafe, Koi Asian Bistro, Salsarita's Cantina, Starbucks Coffee, Ya'lls Pizza & Pies, First Choice Food Service, Mimmo's Pizza and Pasta and Levi's Barbecue and Southern Cuisine.
The vendors will be set up outside on the back side of Wayne Community College campus, and the area is completely shaded by trees so participants can dance and enjoy themselves in a slightly cooler place after they finish their tasting.
There will be parking available on Wayne Memorial Drive and in the campus lots.
And, in addition, for those who are really into shopping, the enormous motorized shopping cart from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture will be in attendance.
The small portions -- and the giant cart -- are only part of what the Taste is all about. The bigger picture is what United Way hopes to do this year for the community.
This year's campaign will kick off at 4 p.m. with a short, inspirational talk designed to energize community members to raise the funds necessary to support the agencies that help improve lives in Wayne County, said Jimmie Ford, this year's campaign chairman.
"At that time, we invite people to come and listen to what the United Way does," Ford said.
The United Way hopes to raise $1.46 million this year, which is enough to improve 29,000 lives.
There will be a little extra motivation to encourage younge people to volunteer and help with the United Way efforts this time around.
Apple I-pods donated from Wal-Mart and Sam's Club will be given away throughout the night of the Taste, but "you have to be in attendance to win," said Susie Acree, United Way of Wayne County's community investment director.
But, volunteers say, the Taste would not be possible without the support of the sponsors.
In addition to WCC, other major sponsors include Time Warner Cable, Moffatt Oil, Haithcock, Barfield, Hulse and Kinsey Law Firm, Mount Olive Pickle, Goldsboro Builders, Arnold Wilbert Corp., Cooper Standard Automotive, RA Jeffreys Distributing Co., Hampton Inn/Holiday Inn, Turner Equipment, Mutual of America, AccuCopy, The Goldsboro News-Argus, Wayne Realty and Coca-Cola.
Tickets must be purchased in advance and are $12. Children under the age of 6 are free. Tickets can be purchased at Wayne County Chamber of Commerce, Mount Olive Chamber of Commerce and Seymour Johnson Air Force Base Outdoor Recreation Center until 5 p.m., Monday. No tickets will be sold the day of the event.