Festival for Youth features games, chili, raffles

By Berl Tiskus
Valley Journal
POLSON — Saturday morning at 8 a.m. the air horn blared, and 16 chili-making teams started chopping, sautéing, stirring and simmering as the third annual Rotary Festival for Youth got underway.
It was perfect chili weather, cool and slightly overcast. Jeremy Morgret, chairman of the Rotary Signature Committee, said, “We had more people than last year. Almost everybody ran out of chili.”
While the chili cooked, the public enjoyed entertainment by The Shamrockers, The Great Scots and a magic show by Ken Avison.
Nancy Hauserman organized kids games, some of which were air hockey, a barrel train pulled by a small tractor, a duck pond, a ball throw and a balloon break game. Kids could also buy an ice cream cone, get their face painted by the Polson High School cheerleaders or get a hamburger or hot dog.
Adults were urged to buy raffle tickets for the Rotary raffle items. The tickets were $25 each or five for $100. The winning names were drawn at 2 p.m. Proceeds from the raffle and from the chili cook-off went to the Polson Youth Soccer League.
Raffle Winners were:
Jane East, $1,000 cash, Donated by First Interstate Bank
Nancy Piper, $1,000 groceries, Donated by Super 1 and Harvest Foods
Bruce Kaznets, Side of Kobe Beef, Donated by Marchi Ranch

Kevin and Sue Taylor, 109 bottles of premium wine, Donated by Polson Rotarians
Dave VanAcker, two season passes to Polson Golf Club, Donated by the City of Polson
At noon the air horn blasted again, and chili chefs presented chili for the judges to taste.
Tasting kits for the chili cook-off were $3 apiece or two for $5 and got the participants samples of each chili as well as the extras, such as James Raymond’s cornbread, fry bread at Eagle Bank, all manner of dips and chips at First Citizen’s Bank and salsa at the Polson Volunteer Fire Department tent. Morgret said Rotarians sold twice as many tasting kits as last year.
Official chief chili judges were Suzanne Beck and Ann Clavadetscher.
The other chili cook-off judges were Jules Clavadetscher, Paul Laisy, Lou Marchello, Brody Moll, Mason Niblack, Randy Stuber, John Triolo and David Whitesell.
Triolo sniffed each sample of chili before he tasted it although he admitted that which chili was best was all a matter of individual taste.
Francis Davidson, Chili Cook-off chair, said, “We had a very good crowd, and it appeared that everyone — kids, cooks, the public and other participants — all had a great time.”
Morgret said the event was successful. Funds from this year’s Rotary Festival for Youth will be donated to the Polson Youth Soccer Association. Although numbers aren’t finalized yet, Morgret said he thinks the event raised close to $15,000 to build a concession stand and bathrooms at the new soccer fields to be built south of Polson.

Chili contest winners

Best Chili:

1st Place: Family Matters, Julia and Julie’s Chili, sponsored by Polson Loaves and Fish Food Pantry, Inc.
2nd Place: First Interstate Bank, Black Pearl Peppers
3rd Place: Eagle Bank, Smokin’ Hot Bison Beauties

Best Costumes:

1st Citizens Bank, Bankers Gone Wild

Best Decorations:
First Presbyterian Church, What You Get is What We Found Chili Company

People’s Choice Best Chili: First Interstate Bank, Black Pearl Peppers