North Country Chili Cook-Off’s
In-Person Event Returns Saturday
Competition to Celebrate 26th Anniversary at Dulles State Office Building
(WATERTOWN, NY) — The Volunteer Transportation Center will host the return of its in-person portion of the Annual North Country Chili Cook-Off this Saturday, Feb. 22. The event will be held at the Dulles State Office Building, 317 Washington St.
“We’re looking forward to being back at the Dulles State Office Building this Saturday,” said VTC Executive Director Sam Purington. “We continue to enjoy this new format for the cook-off between being at local restaurants and having our traditional in-person event. The community seems to love it, too.”
The cook-off — which will feature a mixture of amateur and professional chefs competing for prizes — will begin at 11 a.m., with an opening ceremony held at 12 p.m. Mel Busler of WWNY-TV 7News/Fox28 will again serve as master of ceremonies. Attendees will be able to sample chili from each of the teams competing in the event until 3 p.m. when awards will be presented. Each entry will be scored in various categories by a panel of local judges and attendees will be able to cast their ballots until 2:30 p.m. for the People’s Choice Award.
Admission will be $6 for adults and $2 for children 12 years and younger. A family pass admission will be available for $15. This event is supported by Operation Yellow Ribbon, a volunteer-based committee that promotes visible signs of support for Soldiers and families. Therefore, military ID holders will receive a discount on admission.
“We’re excited have a mix of professional and amateur chefs with what will be a lot of creative recipes, from what we’ve heard,” said Jeremiah S. Papineau, Director of Communications and Foundation Director for the VTC. “A lot of work goes into this event and we always hope it results in something fun to do for the community.”
This Saturday’s in-person event caps off nearly a month of what has been a hybrid version of the cook-off. The first three weeks of February have consisted of a restaurant-to-restaurant format, seeing competition among participating restaurants and businesses in Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Counties, which ended Wednesday, Feb. 19. The cook-off’s remote format again involved participating restaurants and businesses making available samples of their chili entries during regular hours of operation, with the public able to vote for their favorites. The format took the place of the in-person event in 2021 and 2023 and, beginning last year, was paired with the in-person event’s return. Restaurants that participated this included:
• The Dockside Pub, 11 Market Street, Alexandria Bay
• JRECK Subs, 210 State Street, Carthage
• The Church Street Diner, 107 Church Street, Carthage
• Silver Leaf Diner, 3231 U.S. Route 11, DeKalb Junction
• Meme’s Diner, 31606 State Route 3, Felts Mills
• JRECK Subs, 7596 South State Street, Lowville
• Lloyd’s of Lowville, 7405 Utica Boulevard, Lowville
• munch., 7570 South State Street, Lowville
• Ella’s On The Bay, 209 Main Street, Morristown
• JJ’s on the River, 54 East River Street, Ogdensburg
• The Battlefield Eatery, 213 West Main Street, Sackets Harbor
• The Sandwich Bar, 113 West Main Street, Sackets Harbor
• Loony Goose Gastro Pub, 4173 West Road, Turin
• Craft836 Canteen, 836 Coffeen Street, Watertown
• Johnny D’s, 1 Public Square, Watertown
• JRECK Subs, 1218 Arsenal Street, Watertown
• JRECK Subs, 605 State Street, Watertown
• JRECK Subs, 525 Mill Street, Watertown
• JRECK Subs, 1248 Washington Street, Watertown
• Panera Bread, 21872 Towne Center Drive, Watertown
• The Grille at Hilton Garden Inn, 1290 Arsenal Street, Watertown
• Hall Pass Tavern, 19 Bridge Street, West Carthage
• West Side Bar and Grille, 15 Bridge Street, West Carthage
Those who wanted to cast votes for their favorite entries in the remote format were able to do so in person by paper ballot or online through the VTC website. In addition, participating locations were again able to compete for the Top Fundraiser Award by collecting donations for the Volunteer Transportation Center Foundation. Winners of both awards will be recognized at the in-person event at the Dulles State Office Building this Saturday.
The North Country Chili Cook-Off — chaired by Amy McEathron, owner and president of Independent Medical Evaluation Company, Carthage — is a great opportunity to enjoy some amazing chili and raise funds for the Volunteer Transportation Center, specifically in its transportation of Veterans and their family members by dedicated volunteer drivers.
“Once again, we invite the community to come to the North Country Chili Cook-Off to enjoy the chili and help us raise money for the VTC to transport our Veterans,” said Mrs. McEathron, who also serves as a representative of The American Legion Family, which founded the cook-off with the VTC more than 25 years ago. “As always, The American Legion Family thanks the community for its support. We are so thankful to everyone who has supported this event, including our local Veterans organizations.”
In addition, at this year’s event, a bake sale will be held with creations made and donated by Jessica Sheldon and her business, Mud Pie Designs. Proceeds from sales will also benefit the Volunteer Transportation Center.
The 26th Annual North Country Chili Cook-Off is supported by “Underwriting Level Sponsors” Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Watertown Savings Bank, Stewart’s Shops, United Food Service Operators, Advanced Business Systems, WWNY-TV 7News/Fox28/MeTV, Tunes 92.5/Intrepid Broadcasting, PixelIt, NNY360/Watertown Daily Times, Victory Promotions, and The American Legion Family. Platinum Level Sponsors include OneDigital, Independent Medical Evaluation Co., Kinney Drugs Foundation, Price Chopper, Purcell Construction Corporation, Samaritan Medical Center, The ARC of Jefferson-St. Lawrence, and Watertown Internists. Gold Level Sponsors include AmeriCU Credit Union, Bob Johnson Auto Group, Disabled Persons Action Organization, Keller Williams-Amy Kenney, Knowlton Technologies, NFP Corp., North Country Insurance Company, Northern Credit Union, Northern New York Community Foundation, Overhead Door of Watertown, SeaComm Federal Credit Union, State CS Employee Federal Credit Union, and Watertown International Airport Silver Level Sponsors include American Legion Post 1788; American Legion Post 583; American Legion Post 588 SAL; American Legion Post 789 Auxiliary; American Legion Post 821 Auxiliary; American Legion Post 832; American Legion Post 904 SAL; Brotherton Trucking; Carthage Savings & Loan; Cazenovia Equipment Company; Chimera Integrations; Clayton Lions Club; Community Bank, N.A.; DOCO Quick Print/Midgley Printing; Fuller Insurance Agency; GEICO Insurance-Mark Smith; GYMO Architecture Engineering & Land Surveying; Haylor, Freyer, & Coon; Hilton Garden Inn; Hospice of Jefferson County; RBC Wealth Management; Slack Chemical Company; and Steve Shannon Tire. Friends of the Cook-Off Level sponsors include American Legion Post 162 SAL, American Legion Post 1757 SAL, American Legion Post 583 Auxiliary, American Legion Post 586 SAL, Atlantic Testing Laboratories, CHJC, CNY Office Furniture, DGM Coon & Company, Gouverneur Elks Lodge 2035, Hall Pass Tavern, Jake Johnson Properties, Johnson Lumber, LLC, Lloyd’s of Lowville, Lowville Elks Lodge 1605, Meade Optical, North Country German American Club, Syracuse Orthopedic Specialists, The Dockside Pub, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1143, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1231, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6338, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7227 Auxiliary, and Weldon & Trimper Law Firm. Additional support is provided by Blue Mountain Spring Water, Doldo Bros., Dunkin’, Gray’s Flower Shop, Hannaford Supermarket, JRECK Subs, McQuade & Bannigan/The Sign Shop, Mud Pie Designs (Jessica Sheldon), Panera Bread, Pepsi Bottling Group, Sam’s Club, Staples, The Coughlin Group, and ZAPET Vibrations (Tom Ellis).
Proceeds of the North Country Chili Cook-Off will benefit the Volunteer Transportation Center, which provides essential rides to health care appointments, grocery shopping, and other destinations for residents with no transportation alternatives. Funds raised through the cook-off are earmarked to provide transportation to Veterans and their family members, which make up roughly one-third of those transported by volunteer drivers through the VTC.
For more information about the 26th Annual North Country Chili Cook-Off, contact Mr. Papineau at 315-303-2590 or via email at jeremiah@volunteertransportation.org. Additional information is available on-line at www.volunteertransportationcenter.org/chili-cook-off.
ABOUT THE VOLUNTEER TRANSPORTATION CENTER
The Volunteer Transportation Center, Inc. (VTC), established in 1991, drives thousands of miles each year assisting community members in Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Counties and beyond. Over the last 30 years, this essential non-profit organization has provided rides to health care appointments, food sources and other critical needs destinations for residents.
In 2024, volunteer drivers provided 25,478 charitable trips over 876,509 miles in Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence Counties. Of those miles, 318,320 helped those in Jefferson County, 112,852 in Lewis County, and 445,337 in St. Lawrence County. That equated to approximately $438,255 in mileage reimbursement for our volunteers. That’s why the community’s help is so important.
The staff, boards of directors and volunteer drivers look forward to a time when transportation to community activities and services is accessible to all North Country residents regardless of economic or specialized needs. But for now the mission drives on — striving to provide transportation to health, wellness and critical needs destinations utilizing volunteers and mobility management for anyone who has barriers to transportation.
For more information about how you can help the Volunteer Transportation Center, about its upcoming events, or to become a volunteer driver, contact the agency in Jefferson and Lewis Counties at 315-788-0422, in St. Lawrence County at 315-714-2034, or Western New York at 585-250-5030. Volunteers drive their own cars, set their own hours and receive mileage reimbursement but, more importantly, make a difference in the community. To learn more, visit www.volunteertransportationcenter.org.