Rehoboth Beach

The First-Ever Rehoboth Beach VegFest a Success!

smcdonaldEvents, Outreach, Victories Leave a Comment

On Sat., June 1, 2013 over 600 people joined us at Epworth United Methodist Church in Rehoboth Beach, DE to celebrate the many benefits and flavors of vegetarian eating during the first-ever Rehoboth Beach VegFest. Festival-goers spent the day indulging in a wide variety of vegan food, listening to fun and informative speakers, attending (and sampling food during) cooking demonstrations, browsing the vendor shops, and enjoying the gorgeous sunny weather that included a cool ocean breeze. 

Even before the festival opened, early-bird attendees were eager to walk around and visit the over 35 exhibitor booths then they lined up for our free goodie bags, filled with free products, coupons, and other items from our sponsors — all 300 of which were given away within 30 minutes.

On the main stage, VegFest attendees enjoyed engaging talks by Paul Shapiro, John Schlimm, Erica Meier, Dorothy Greet, and Joseph Gonzales. The Local Buzz‘s Deb Griffin emceed the event while Ruby Lathon and Gretchen Hanson from Hobo’s Restaurant taught the crowd how to create delicious and healthful plant-based meals during their cooking demos.

The event successfully showcased the increasing variety of vegan options available in the Rehoboth Beach community. From decadent sweets served up by Cake Break to savory veggie meats dished out by Viana Sausages, to a variety of food from Hobo’s Restaurant, a(MUSE.), Nage Rehoboth, and Modern Mixture, attendees were sure to find something that satisfied their tastebuds.

To add to the day’s festivities, seven eager and brave contestants of all ages participated in a cupcake eating contest sponsored by Cake Break.  With a large  crowd of spectators cheering them on, the challenge to quickly — and without the use of hands — consume four cupcakes ended in a few short minutes as local chef and restaurant owner, Hari Cameron took first place. His prize? A Rehoboth Beach VegFest goodie bag and…  a free cupcake, of course, which he promptly ate in two bites!

The celebration continued on Sunday with 55 guests joining us and several speakers at Nage Rehoboth for a gourmet all-vegan benefit brunch!

From start to finish, this event was a tremendous success, thanks to all our amazing volunteers, outstanding speakers, generous sponsors and our more than 35 vendors—as well as everyone who joined us on Saturday for the festivities.

Be sure to check out lots more photos online, and find us on Facebook so we can notify you of next year’s event!

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