October 4, 2012

An Employee Participated in the 5th Annual Blues, Views, and BBQ Festival

Lynn Goodwin, VP Facilities, is a long-time MSLO employee who has a passion for BBQ and would like to share this recent event that she and her BBQ team participated in.

Since 2008, our team, Psycho Grillers, has competed in the Blues, Views, and BBQ Festival in downtown Westport, CT.  The two-day Festival, sponsored by the Westport Downtown Merchants Association and The Levitt Pavilion, is a great time, bringing together the worlds of BBQ and Blues on the banks of the scenic Saugatuck River.  The two-day event features a full live music line-up, activities for children and families, and craft beer (a great complement to great barbecue).

Psycho Grillers took on twenty-two other amateur teams in the "Cookin’ for a Cause” competition.  These teams of backyard chefs compete for trophies (and bragging rights) in four categories: chicken, pork ribs, chef's choice, and dessert. The main rule?  Everything has to be cooked on a charcoal grill or smoker.  Entries are scored by Kansas City BBQ Society-approved judges on appearance, texture, and taste.  In addition to awards for individual categories, the Grand Champion trophy is awarded to the team with the highest overall score for the day.  In prior years, Psycho Grillers has won trophies for Ribs, Chef’s Choice, and took the Grand Championship in 2009!  The team entry fees are donated to the Westport Women’s Club Food Closet.  The Food Closet was started in 1975 as an Emergency Food Distribution Program under the leadership of the Westport Department of Human Services, and it supplies over 500 grocery bags of non-perishable food to town residents in need each year.  We had great fun cooking, visiting with friends who stopped by, and testing our skills on the grill.  Plus, we took home third place overall.  It’s inspiring to experience the community coming together for a greater cause, and we’ve already been thinking about how to take home that Grand Champion trophy next year.

(photographed by Natalie Chin, Lynn Goodwin, Scott Goodwin, and Angus Chen)

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