Wine, food event raises $500,000 for KIDS Center
Central Oregon’s largest wine and food event, the three-day Cork & Barrel fundraising series, a benefit for KIDS Center of Bend, reported $500,000 in net revenue raised at the 2019 event series. Held annually in July at Broken Top Club in Bend, Cork & Barrel funds 20% of the $2.8 million annual operating budget of KIDS Center, the only child abuse intervention center in Central Oregon.
“The need for KIDS Center’s services continues to exist and Cork & Barrel is just one way that the Central Oregon community can come together to ensure that children and families experiencing child abuse receive the vital intervention and therapeutic services that enable them to overcome and reach their fullest potential” stated Shelly Smith, Executive Director. “Critical support from this event will ensure that KIDS Center continues to meet the ever-changing and growing population in Central Oregon.”
Each year, Cork & Barrel brings a different wine region to Central Oregon. Twenty two wineries from throughout Southern Oregon wine country were featured over three days, July 18-20, during last month’s Cork & Barrel event series.
Executive Chef Franco Console of the Neuman Hotel Group based in Ashland, Oregon, executed a five-course meal for 450 guests of the Grand Cru gala dinner on Saturday, July 20 on the green at Broken Top Club. A team of 50 student servers from the Redmond High School and Mt. View High School cheer squads provided fine-dining service for all guests of the Grand Cru dinner.
New this year, Cork & Barrel also featured a winemaker dinner hosted in March at the Citizen Bar and Kitchen. “Our first ever spring winemaker dinner was a fun way for guests to get a flavor of what they could expect to experience in July, while also giving folks who couldn’t join us in July an opportunity to be part of the Cork & Barrel experience. We plan to continue the Spring Winemaker Dinner Series again in 2020,” said Robin Antonson, Director of Development & Marketing.
An event series that requires year-round planning, the 2019 Cork & Barrel wine and food event fundraising series was lauded as “an excellent event, masterfully orchestrated for a great cause” by Stephen Reustle, owner of Reustle-Prayer Rock Vineyards outside of Roseburg, Oregon in the Umpqua Valley. Paso Robles wine country was unveiled as the 2020 wine region during the Live Auction on Saturday night of the event. Cork & Barrel 2020 will bring 20 wineries from Paso Robles wine country – and exciting live and silent auction packages for event guests – with the help of the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance, a member association with a focus on Paso Robles wine country. Early Bird Tickets are on sale now for Cork & Barrel 2020 events at www.corkandbarrel.org.
About KIDS Center:
Built by the community and for the community, KIDS Center is dedicated to the prevention, evaluation, and treatment of all forms of child abuse. In a child-friendly environment, KIDS Center provides comprehensive child abuse evaluations to children who may have been abused, seeking to find out what has happened and to provide a path to healing through family support and therapeutic services. In 2018, KIDS Center served 2,929 children and families in Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties, at zero cost to them. Information about KIDS Center, including services provided and annual reports, can be found at www.kidscenter.org.
About Cork & Barrel:
A three-day fundraising series of events focusing on food, wine, and philanthropy, Cork & Barrel has grown to be the largest food and wine event in Central Oregon since its inception in 2013. Cork & Barrel 2019 was presented by Avion Water Company. A Sip of Cork & Barrel was presented by NW Self Storage. Additional support was provided by Central Oregon Radiology Associates, First Interstate Bank, Les Schwab, BendBroadband, Bend Radio Group, Central Oregon Daily powered by Zolo, Combined Communications, Horizon Broadcasting Group, Law Offices of Warren John West PC, US Bank, Bigfoot Beverages, and Hasson Company Realtors. All revenue generated at Cork & Barrel 2019 directly benefited KIDS Center. Information about Cork & Barrel can be found at www.corkandbarrel.org.
