First Chili Cookoff unites businesses
The unity of local businesses is at it again. This past Sunday, the Merchants Guild ran a chili cook off.
“In November, we started talking about what we wanted to do at the beginning of the year,” said Jim Winegar, owner of Artbeat Gallery. Artbeat showcases 40 Greene County artists and another 40 outside the region in the Pittsburgh area. They’ll be starting their fourth year of business at the end of July.
For the first annual chili cook off, a handful of local businesses crafted their own recipes and offered samples to visitors.
Honoring their tradition from years past, the Merchants Guild wanted to do something that benefited a non-profit, as they had done in many of their community events in the past. Each person could vote for who had the best chili as many times as they wanted, but each vote cost a dollar or one canned good. All proceeds benefited the Corner Cupboard Food Bank.
The winner who received the most votes received an illustrious golden ladle. Winegar said in a relatively sparsely populated area, the Merchants Guild wants to highlight what’s going on in Waynesburg.
“Towns around the country have taken an original flavor,” said Winegar. “Very few towns have what we have.”
Winegar mentions all of the travel he’s done overseas. He says the environment in Europe is vastly different from the one here in the United States.
“Our concept of suburb and the same eight entities off every one of our interstates has established a different atmosphere,” said Winegar.
That’s a culture that Winegar says small towns like Waynesburg are trying to confront. The whole purpose of the Merchants Guild is to put Waynesburg back on the map, he says, but admits they have some way to go.
Winegar thinks an important first step is infusing money back into the community. Winegar explained that every dollar spent at a Waynesburg business makes its way around and it makes a difference.
The Merchants Guild’s tagline, “Creating community and commerce”, reflects that mission.
Kristy Vliet, the owner of 5 Kidz Kandy, recognizes the importance of that mission and recognized the importance of the chili cook off.
“It’s huge for us because it draws the people that wouldn’t haven stopped,” said Vliet. “Shows how our stores have evolved and changed over the seasons.”
The Merchants Guild has more events planned in the coming months, including a summer open house and a rock the chalk event. A dozen artists will create large-scale drawings during the course of an afternoon and at the end of the competition, a professional independent artist will award first, second and third place and people’s choice.
The next event, however, is a holiday egg extravaganza to celebrate the Easter holiday. Stay tuned.