It's Chili Cook-Off Time!
It’s one of the biggest weekends of the year…it’s the St. George Island Chili Cook-off! The Chili Cook-off is arguably the most attended event on St. George Island all year. Nearly 5,000 people are expected to gather in order to sample some delicious food and enjoy the different sites. The Chili Cook-off is a fundraising event for the SGI Volunteer Fire Department. The winner with the best chili wins $500. This is such a big deal, that it is sanctioned by the International Chili Society (who knew there was a chili society?!)!
The volunteer fire department on St. George Island is important to us in the Beigle family. My (Jonathan) parents have a home on SGI that was struck by lightning about 1.5 years ago. While there was significant damage to the home, it was not a complete loss because of the efforts of the SGI Volunteer Fire Department. We are super thankful for these volunteers! This is the biggest fundraising event for the department, and they are expecting to raise more than $100,000.
The Chili Cook-off weekend is more than just tasting some delicious food. There is also the 5K Red Pepper Run that happens at 8:00 am on Saturday to help everyone get really hungry for the chili. There is also a best ball golf tournament at St. James Bay in Carabelle on Thursday. There is even a homemade salsa contest! All proceeds go to the fire department.
In addition to the fundraising that happens at the event, there are many great sponsors of the Chili Cook-off like Jason White Construction and Builders by the Sea (great contractors that we have used at our homes multiple times) and the Naumann Group (the realtors that we used when we purchased our homes).
While everyone wants to have fun at the Chili Cook-off, there have been some “roudy” people in the past. As a result, every Sheriff’s deputy will be on duty this weekend to make sure that no one litters on the beach, drives while drunk or parks illegally. Please be respectful of our beautiful island while you have a good time!
To learn more about the Chili Cook-off from some of the volunteers click here.
Have you been to the Chili Cook-off? We’d love to hear about it! Please tell us about it in the comment section below.
