Really Chili Challenge to support Community Soup Kitchen
By Rochelle Moore
Published in News on October 15, 2017 1:45 AM
The 11th annual Really Chili Challenge will bring together local cooks, prize-winning recipes and residents from across Wayne County for the Oct. 28 charity event.
The chili challenge will be from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the John Street parking lot, off Center Street in downtown Goldsboro.
"It's our annual fundraiser," said Doricia Benton, Community Soup Kitchen director. "The importance is to keep the foundation of the soup kitchen strong in the community and to help our friends that are in need with a meal."
So far, 20 teams have signed up for the challenge, with the deadline to register set for Oct. 23. The team entry fee is $75. Registrations are being accepted at the Community Soup Kitchen, 112 W. Oak St., which can be reached at 731-3939.
The chili challenge typically draws close to 20 different teams, including repeat winners who continue to battle for prizes in an effort to raise money for charity.
The fundraiser can bring in close to $20,000 for the soup kitchen, which comes from sponsorships, admission fees, team registrations and voting donations, Benton said.
"All proceeds benefit the Community Soup Kitchen," Benton said.
Chili teams will have a bucket at each booth where the public can drop in donations that equate to votes, which are later tallied for the People's Choice Award, Benton said. In 2016, People's Choice donations brought in almost $7,000, with the winning team collecting close to $2,585.
This year, there will be first, second and third place Best Chili awards that will be selected by a group of 15 judges. There will also be awards for Best Decorated Booth and People's Choice.
The Best Chili awards include cash prizes of $150 for first place, $100 for second and $50 for third. All award winners will also receive a chili challenge award bowl, donated and designed by Randy Wright, Benton said.
"Instead of a trophy, that is our trophy," she said. "Every year (it's) different."
The day of the event, cooking teams will be able to start setting up at 7:30 a.m. The chili must be made from scratch on location in the John Street parking lot. No store-bought chili mixes are allowed, but meat can be pre-cooked for the competition.
"It's to be homemade," Benton said. "There's no electricity. It's all propane. Everybody does their own recipe. Some are mild and some are hot."
Each team will prepare six gallons or more of chili.
Hundreds of people typically attend the challenge each year in support of the cause and for a day of fun in downtown Goldsboro.
"We always pick up a few new teams every year, but a lot of the team base has been doing it every year," Benton said. "At the end of the day, it's just a great cause in our community. It's about helping people."
Admission tickets to the challenge are $5 and can purchased at the soup kitchen. There is no admission cost for children age 5 and younger.
The Really Chili Challenge started 11 years ago when the soup kitchen board was trying to find a creative way to raise money for the organization.
The kitchen serves an average of 160 meals per day and is open Monday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Benton said. Meals are served from 11 a.m. to noon.
In 2016, the kitchen served 40,829 meals, and from January through the end of August, 27,553 meals have been served.
The Community Soup Kitchen, which opened Dec. 15, 1980, is in its 37th year of operation and has served 1,013,545 meals since its start, Benton said.