By Jennifer Eisenbart
Editor
About two to three months ago, the organizers of ChocolateFest came to Love Inc. Executive Director Bill Schoessling with an idea.
“Bil (Scherrer) and Barb Lois sat down and wanted to talk to me,” Schoessling said. “We sat down and talked about what their vision was to get more people on the grounds on Friday night.
“You have the fireworks Friday night, and what better place to watch the fireworks than on the ChocolateFest grounds?”
Because of a concerted effort by Scherrer – the president of ChocolateFest – to fill the grounds on a traditionally slow opening night at ChocolateFest, Friday night will feature the first-ever “Pack the Pantry.”
Admission to ChocolateFest that night will cost just $5, or people can bring five non-perishable food items.
All proceeds and items donated will go to Love Inc.’s food pantry.
“One hundred percent of that comes to us,” said Schoessling.
Scherrer said he first started thinking about changing the culture of Friday night at the festival when he left the grounds right before last year’s fireworks’ show.
“I had to leave the grounds right around the time the fireworks started,” said Scherrer, who went to Pick ’n Save, and saw the parking lot full of people waiting for the fireworks.
He wanted people to come to the grounds to watch the show – but also give them a good deal for their dollar on one of the slower days of the festival.
“My wife … she said, ‘Do a pack the pantry,’” Scherrer said. “This is a nice way to help Love … and really give back to the community.”
Scherrer said that tickets will still be welcomed that evening, but is hoping people will choose to use the five non-perishables/$5 admission for Love Inc. instead.
Both Schoessling and Scherrer stressed that the donations can be more than canned food. Love Inc.’s pantry is in need of items such as shampoo, deodorant, toilet paper and other sundry items as well as the traditional food items.
Schoessling said he has volunteers lined up to man all five gates Friday night to show a presence for the service organization.
“We’ve got everybody signed up,” Schoessling said. “I think it’ll work. I think it’s a great idea.
“It gives us a nice fundraiser, and it brings awareness to, in our case, our food pantry. People do eat here year-round.”
ChocolateFest has taken place in Burlington since 1987 and moved to the Memorial Day Weekend in 2004. The Pack the Pantry event on Friday is in keeping with the mission of the all-volunteer festival, which has raised an estimated $2.2 million for the non-profit service groups that staff ChocolateFest each year.
Some of the activities planned for the four-day festival:
• The Burlington Rotary Carnival started Wednesday and will run through Monday. $25 wristbands will be sold for sessions today, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. A new wristband will be needed for each session.
• For $6, visitors can purchase a “Taster Ticket” for the Chocolate Experience tent. That will allow the user to redeem 10 chocolate samples from inside the tent.
• Main stage acts in “prime time” feature “Cherry Pie” – an 80s to today rock band – at 9 p.m. Friday, The Toys Saturday at 8 p.m., Bella Cain (Top-40 country hits) at 9 p.m. Sunday, and Eagles tribute band Heartache Tonight Monday at 4:30 p.m. Local Burlington High School rock/pep band Orange Crush will also perform on the main stage at 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
• Miss Burlington Area Chocolate Fest 2015 will be crowned on the Wanasek Stage starting at 2 p.m. Saturday. The winner will compete at Miss Wisconsin 2015, while this year’s outgoing winner Ashely Monti will head to Miss Wisconsin next month.
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