IACHH Meatball Madness Festival - November 18, 2017

Oct 25, 2017 1927

BY: John De Cecco

Last July we posted an article about our Meatball Challenge, but since then, the details have changed due to Hurricane Irma causing us to cancel and reschedule our annual Feast to Honor San Gennaro. Now, we are having both events on the same day in the same outdoor venue, Shelter Cove Park on Hilton Head, South Carolina (the same location where we have our annual bocce tournament in the springtime!), with a focus on hunger awareness, and local charities that feed the impoverished.

The added gala promotion this year is a history-making attempt to break the Guinness World Record for largest meatball on earth. Currently, the record stands at 1,100 lbs. We are shooting for 1,500 lbs on November 18, 2017. After the weighing in, and recording by the Guinness World Record Co., the meatball will be portioned out - according to Department of Health guidelines - and donated to local soup kitchens via Second Helpings.

The day will begin at 8 am with a 5k race, with runners raising money for hunger awareness charities. Each runner gets a meatball sliders, and a beer upon finishing the race, plus we have a lot of news media attending this, including television shows, like Small Town, Big Deal. From the September San Gennaro Festival, we will have many food vendors, local artisans selling crafts, and jewelry, a silent auction, live entertainment from Larry Tannelli and his wife Claudette, and of course the popular inflatable kid’s zone!

We’re very excited to kick off this holiday season with a fundraiser that will remind us to be grateful, and generous, at a time when families are gathering at their tables to feast, while many have little or nothing to eat.

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