Despite his best efforts to get the Chili Cook Off planned for July 26, organizer Marc Yaworski was unable to garner enough interest to get people involved to render the event up and running
By July 20, Yaworski knew he had to cancel the fundraising event for cancer patients in the area because it would not generate much funds. When Ponoka News announced the cancellation on its Facebook page, some residents in the community voiced their disappointment saying they were planning to attend.
Yaworski said he had one person who registered, which was not enough to host the event. His company, Mi Casa Imports, the Town of Ponoka and Hamilton’s IGA had committed $500 each to host the event. He feels $40 for each team of four people was not unreasonable.
Funding for downtown events is available; the Town of Ponoka has set aside some money for organizers and they just need to apply, explained Yaworski, who is also a member of the town council.
“We only had one restaurant willing to go into the salsa competition, which was the Iron Horse,” explained Yaworski.
He feels with the busy holiday summer months, this may not have been the best time to host the event. “I think it was just the wrong time of year.”
Yaworski won’t give up though, he may change the date to sometime in the fall.