OCEAN COUNTY – Chefs’ Night Out featured delicious food and drink samplings from 60 local restaurants and vendors. With a 50/50 raffle valued at $10,000 and a gift auction, it served as the biggest fundraiser of the year for the Ocean County Foundation for Vocational Technical Education.
OCVTS culinary students were out in force with several tables of dessert delicacies. Students Damien Romeo Jr. and Kimberly Cespedes even brought some dessert to attendees in the form of their Cannoli Caddy where your cannolis were made to order, with a choice of topping options.
Among the restaurants present was The Waterfront based in the Forked River section of Lacey Township that provided a small plate filled with three items to sample. The Jon Bon Jovi Soul Kitchen of Toms River offered up shrimp and grits, Klee’s and Henry’s – both in Seaside – provided bread pudding and chocolate bread pudding samples.
Beverages were important too. Flying Monkeys served several variations of one of their craft beers. Icarus Brewing Company of Brick and Bacchus Winemakers in Toms River also provided sample drinks from their establishments.
Among the many attendees were Judy Cook and Peter Devine of Beachwood who came out to enjoy the food and atmosphere. “The desserts are all really amazing. This is our first time. We were at something like this years ago but for a different group. This is wonderful,” Cook said.
Devine couldn’t decide what he enjoyed best. “I love the variety of food they have here.”
Helping out at the event were OCVTS cosmetology students under the direction of Barbara Stewart.
Stewart said, “I have 23 students and we have 21 of them here tonight. They are working the floor and clean-up, and they are enjoying the food too. We have a lot more vendors this year.”
Some Frank Sinatra classics were heard sung by Joseph Necci who performed during the evening.
The event is always held on the first Monday in March. It moved back to the RWJBarnabas Health Arena after two years at the Lacey Elks Lodge.
Numerous attendees got the chance to enjoy a night out for a cause to help fund scholarships, educational programs, and support services “that are crucial for the growth and success of our students in career and technical education,” said Annie Sayers, transition specialist with the Vo-Tech.
Sayers noted, “this is more than just a night out enjoying delicious culinary delights; it’s an opportunity to provide the necessary tools and resources to support the educational journeys of future professionals in various trades.”
The school system has a number of new projects and plans coming up. Director of Curriculum and Grants Director Gary MacDonald was present at the fundraiser and he noted that one building project concerns the expansion of the OCVTS Jackson Center. He also referenced the introduction of new programs and curricula, including the Bricklayer, Allied Craftworker & Mason, and Legal Studies and Paralegal Practice.
OCVTS Board member Maureen Stankowitz referenced the Jackson Center project noting “it is going very well. They had to put tents around the building with heaters because it was so cold they couldn’t work on it but it is on schedule. They added more classroom space and when that is added they will have bigger projects.”
“Welding is going out there and one of the smaller projects is the Toms River center and we are improving on the mason program and taking down the Waretown building and building a new building.” She said one program would be moved to Ocean County College. “There is so much going on.”
