Georgia Wing Fest draws another good crowd

ALBANY — Despite the early threat of rain, a large number of area residents ventured out to the Albany Fairgrounds Saturday to enjoy some good tunes and eats while supporting an important cause at the annual Georgia Wing Fest.

Now in it’s sixth year, the Georgia Wing Fest is an important fundraising event for the Cancer Coalition of South Georgia, helping to raise money for and promote the organization’s work to support those whose lives have been impacted by cancer.

“Everything the Cancer Coalition does is focused on South Georgia, so it’s important that we have support from the local community,” said Cancer Coaltion of South Georgia Executive Director Diane Fletcher. “The Wing Fest has become a great event that allows area residents to have fun while showing their support for what our organization is doing.”

Rick Schneider, who developed the Wing Fest and organizes it each year, said supporting a local organization was very important to him and that he was extremely excited to see a strong turnout at Saturday’s event.

“It’s looking pretty good,” Schneider said of the crowds early on. “I was worried about the weather, but I think we’re going to be fine. I expect about seven to eight thousand folks to come through here.”

Naturally, part of what draws the Wing Fest crowds each year is the full slate of entertainment that’s offered, including plenty of kids’ activities like bounce houses and face painting. And there are some events that are fun for folks of all ages, such as the mechanical bull ride.

Another huge draw is the live music that plays throughout the day. This year’s event included area favorites the Evergreen Family Band, the Jodi Mann Band, Unbreakable Bloodline and Relapse.

In fact, the live music was the main draw for local business owner Tom Gieryic, who was attending his first Wing Fest this year.

“I really like the music,” Gieryic said. “I love homegrown music and talent. My wife came last year, but this is my first year coming and I’m having a good time. I’m big griller too, not in competition or anything, just as a hobby, so I’m excited about the food, too. It’s smelling pretty good right now.”

Gieryic was certainly not alone in his excitement for the numerous food vendors, which help really make the Georgia Wing Fest such a popular event.

Outside of the music, the highlight of the day is always the two wing competitions, which bring out the best in food vendors and patrons alike.

One such event is the annual wing contest where wings from the various food vendors are judged by a panel of judges, which this year included celebrity judges Albany Police Chief Michael Persley, Albany City Manager Sharon Subadan, and TV anchor Ben Roberts. Two “average Joe” judges, as they are known, always help, and this year Deana Tillman of Cordele and Andrea Holton of Leesburg did the honors.

The panel judged wings in three different categories — best mild wings, best hot wings and most creative wings.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Persley said before the start of the competition. “It’s a lot of fun, and I like being able to help a good cause.”

Helping the Cancer Coalition was on everyone’s mind throughout the day, including Miss Albany Outstanding Teen Larkin Carden, who enjoyed playing games and listening to music, as well as helping with the wing competition.

“The Cancer Coalition is a non-profit and supporting non-profits is part of my platform as Miss Albany Outstanding Teen,” said Carden. “So, I’m here to support them and to represent not only my platform but what Miss Albany Outstanding Teen should be.”

Jason Griffin of the Evergreen Family Band, was also proud his bandmates were able to support a good cause, which is something they try to do whenever they can.

“I’m not sure how many we’ve played, but this is like our fifth or sixth year,” said Griffin. “Rick called us to play and we love doing it. Playing for the benefit of an organization like this is great, too. We try to play as many of these types of things as we can each year. We love the Wing Fest. We get to be outside and enjoy the great weather and just have a good time.”

It will be a few days before the organizers know how much they were able to raise for the Cancer Coalition of South Georgia this year, but Schneider said he expects it will be like most years when he’s been able to present somewhere in the neighborhood of $2,000-$3,000.

“We don’t make any money from doing this,” said Schnieder. “There’s expenses for putting it on, but everything else goes to the Cancer Coalition.”

Schnieder said that based on the continued success of the event, he anticipates doing it again next year.

To learn more about the Cancer Coalition of South Georgia visit www.sgacancer.org or email [email protected] or call (229) 312-1700.