Supporting Needs

Written By: Marlene Osteen | Issue: September - 2022

As it has for the last six years, the Highlands Food andWine Festival will take place the second weekend ofNovember (November 10-13), transforming this smalltown into a landscape of wine and food tastings, seminars, andelbow-brushing with celebrity chefs.Sprawled across the city in restaurants and event spaces, thefour-day gala highlights the talents of local and regional chefsat happenings from a food truck round-up to formal dinners, anoyster roast and the renowned “Sunday Shindig.” Under tentsat Kelsey-Hutchison Founders Park and on Main Street, craftbrewers, spirit distillers and wine personalities man booths andtables distributing samples to eager attendees.Again, this year, tickets to all the “big” events were sold outwithin minutes.Owned by Highlands Festivals Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profitorganization that also owns the spring music festival, BearShadow, HFW has secured and boosted Highlands’ reputationas a center for food, wine and music lovers. The organizationis dedicated to promoting Highlands as a world-class culinary,lodging, shopping and outdoor lifestyle destination. More thanjust a chance to party, the festivals lure visitors to the Plateauduring the shoulder seasons.As Festivals Inc. President David Bock says, “For manyattendees, it’s their first time visiting the Plateau, and they areencouraged to return and to perhaps eventually move here.”Still, there’s another side of the festivals that is lesser known.They’ve been powerful vehicles in raising money for essential com-munity services and supporting local and educational endeavors.“Because HFW is a culinary event it made sense to support theCulinary Institute of America (CIA) with a scholarship whilesimultaneously honoring an individual for whom we all had agreat love and fond memories,” says Bock.And so, the Louis Osteen Scholarship at CIA was created. Todate $67,500 has been funded toward the total endowment, andone scholarship awarded thus far with another scheduled forthis fall. Another key goal – subsidizing distinctive Highlandsentities – was realized with this year’s donation of $9,500 toFriends of Founders Park and $10,000 each to the HighlandsBiological Center and the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust onbehalf of Bear Shadow. The Highlands Food Pantry received$36,000 from previous festivals.Summing up, Bock explains that, “There are lots of needs inour communities and we are lucky to be able to support them,as we will continue to do as the festivals expand and generatemore funds.”

by Marlene Osteen