By TRAVINA COLEMAN
Press Staff Writer
May 05, 2009 10:02 am
—
The results are in. Local residents and visitors alike chowed down, listened to the music, cheered the tractors and snagged a few crawdads.
And a bunch of folks came out on top as winners in the wake of The Red Fern Festival, held the last weekend of April.
Four different categories picked up stiff competition in the community-judged cook-off during the Third annual Redfern Festival Chili Cook-off and BBQ Extravaganza, hosted by the Kiwanis of Tahlequah. Winners of The Crowd-Pleasing BBQ are: Century 21, first; Slab Daddy’s, second; and Sweet Willy’s, third. In the Crowd-Pleasing Chili, winners were: Slab Daddy’s, first; Bank of Cherokee County, second; and Century 21, third. The Crowd-Pleasing Booth winners were: Bank of Cherokee County, first; Rockin Cochran BBQ, second; and Slab Daddy’s, third.
The Community Servant’s Challenge was taken by First Emergency Management ES BBQ.
Patti Morton of the Kiwanis Club said the group raised more than $6,000.
“Everyone had a great time,” she said. “We have had so many people who participated say what they are going to do for next year. Plus there are a lot of people who did not participate say they will be cooking next year. It was a huge success, and I think everyone had a great time. The Kiwanis will be able to put the $6,000 dollars back into the community to help children; that is our mission.”
Kate Kelly, tourism director for the Tahlequah Area Chamber of Commerce, said there were two other awards entrants could win.
One is the OId Dan and Little Ann Award.
“That award is for the float that best exemplifies the spirit of the story,” Kelly said. “Steeley Springs Church won that one.”
And for the first year, the parade featured tractors. Don Carroll of Tahlequah won the oldest-working tractor award with his 1929 John Deere.
Copyright © 1999-2008 cnhi, inc.