Taste of Coshocton to feature four new vendors
COSHOCTON – United Way’s Taste of Coshocton will feature four new food vendors this year with a total of 16 vendors. Joining the event this year will be Army Navy, JB’s BBQ, Your Best Barbeque, and Katie Bakes. Other vendors will include Baker’s Catering, Coffee Connection, Grand Mom Minnie’s, Hannah Marie’s, Healthy’s, Medbery Marketplace, Olde Thyme Country Market, Papa John’s, Pearl Valley Cheese, Schumaker Farms, Warehouse, and The Yard.
“Any restaurant who participates does so out of the goodness of their heart and donates their time and food they serve,” said Lyn Mizer, director of United Way.
The event will be held from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 9 at the Lake Park Pavilion. Tickets are $12 for adults and $5 for children and can be purchased at the United Way Office, 402 Main St., Coshocton.
“It’s grown over the years,” said Mizer. “I think the reputation of the good food that’s served gets out in the community by word of mouth. People tell their friends and so many people purchase tickets for themselves and their friends and they all come together.”
There will be a couple of changes to this year’s Taste of Coshocton, the most notable being that participants will no longer vote for their favorite choice.
“In the past, we used to allow people to vote for their favorite and it seemed like the same vendor won year after year,” said Mizer. “It’s not so much that the others weren’t tasty, but people have their favorites. This year, in lieu of voting, we will be giving out participation plaques to everyone as something they can display in their business. We want their patrons to know they have served their community in this way.”
Another change will be the raffle baskets. There will only be 12 Longaberger baskets for raffle this year due to the combination of the recreation agencies at the end of last year. Each basket holds about $150 – $200 worth of merchandise. Tickets are $1 each or six for $5. Raffle ticket holders do not have to be present to win.
Lynn Jacobs will be donating his time to emcee again this year and Brad Fuller will also donate his time to perform. Buckeye Brine is the United Way 2018 – 2019 campaign corporate sponsor.
“This fundraiser is the kick-off for our 2018 – 2019 campaign,” said Mizer. “It helps defray campaign costs which includes mailing and materials. Our goal is $350,000, the same as last year.”
The event takes a lot of hard work by United Way agencies to be successful each year.
“We could not pull this evening off without our partner agencies helping us,” said Mizer. “They provide us with one person to help us during the event. I’m very proud of the collaboration of all non-profits in town who are trying to look out for the best interest in Coshocton.”
In addition to funding 14 agencies in Coshocton County, United Way is also using donor money to support new programs to reach further into the growing needs in Coshocton.
They recently provided funding to Coshocton Behavioral Health Choices (CBHC) to fund a video about teens and drugs. United Way is also supporting a program at the Coshocton Community Center that will be for at-risk youth, and the Coshocton County Fatherhood Initiative.
“We’re glad to extend our reach by supporting a couple of non-partner programs,” said Mizer. “When you give to your local United Way, one donation is affecting so many areas and it all stays in your local community.”
Category: Clubs & Organizations
