Owen Allenger, the president of the Mountain View 4-H club of Moscow, says for many years now, at the beginning of May, the club does a spaghetti feed to raise money.
“It’s always been a great success,” Allenger said. “We get a lot of our fundraiser money from this event and it’s also a great way for our members to really be a part of the club. Because everyone gets to take part in preparing the food, making food to sell and general event stuff.”
Allenger said on average, they will get 100 people on a slow year and 300 people on a good year. They offer not only spaghetti, but salad, garlic bread and meat sauce and meatless sauce for patrons. It is beneficial as it shows the public what 4-H does and gives it some publicity.
The reason they serve spaghetti, according to Allenger, is because it is tradition. Spaghetti is also easy to prepare and serve, perfect for a fundraiser. It is a good way for members and their parents to get involved and volunteer.
The fundraiser is important to 4-H, as it is a main source of revenue for the club and helps them with activities, such as sending students on statewide trips, such as the Know Your Government Conference or the State Teen Association Conference.
“It’s different than what our club can offer because it’s an event where they can see everyone across the state, learn different things, and have a great time,” Allenger said.
The money goes to projects that 4-H sponsors, such as obtaining resources or necessary supplies. The money also goes to scholarships.
Allenger is glad that 4-H can do the fundraiser this year. Last year, they decided not to go through with it because everyone was in lockdown due to COVID-19.
There are some changes this year for the fundraiser. It will still be held at the fairgrounds, but the Idaho Health Department recommends a professional chef helps run the kitchen. That means the chefs must have gone to culinary school. One of the parents’ husbands who has gone to culinary school helped run the kitchen before, so they are having him return to keep their bases covered.
Once concern was they would not be able to host a bake sale at their feed. Normally, they would have a bake sale and a cake auction at the feed. Originally, it was not allowed due to COVID-19 guidelines, but they have confirmed they will be able to sell baked goods at their spaghetti feed.
The feed is May 3 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tickets for the spaghetti feed are $8 for adults, $5 for kids and $25 for a family. Tickets can be purchased from 4-H members, but also will be sold at the door on the day of the event. For more information, check out Mountain View 4-H’s Facebook page.
Ryan Hill can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @RyanHil32959860