For Art Blankenship, assisting with the coordination of the Annual Benefit Oyster Roast at the Fredericksburg Fairgrounds is laborious but gratifying.
It was especially fulfilling a few years ago, when Blackenship had a chance encounter with a member of the family who’d benefited from the fundraiser.
“It’s one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done,” Blankenship said … “I remember a family we helped, and I saw them a couple of years after we helped them, and they came to me and said if we had not helped them when we did, they would’ve lost their home. You feel like you’re really making a difference in people’s lives.”
Fairview Baptist Church in Fredericksburg and River Club Church in Spotsylvania County are hosting the 41st Annual Benefit Oyster Roast on Feb. 28 from 2-5 p.m. in conjunction with the McClung-Logan Equipment Company. The event typically assists a family facing overwhelming expenses due to a medical condition. This year, the proceeds will go to a Fauquier County single mother raising a daughter with cerebral palsy.
The event collected between $40,000 and $60,000 each of the past few years, with all the funds benefiting a family selected by the organizers.
Chris Campbell, who is leading the event, said there are 30 sponsors with each contributing at least $1,000 toward the setup, food and materials required. Anyone who attends donates whatever they can afford. All the donations go to the family as does any leftover money from the sponsors.
Campbell said there will be deep-fried and roasted oysters as well as hot dogs, cole slaw, chips, and a “slew of desserts” next Saturday.
“You can get back in the line for more oysters,” Campbell said. “It’s all-you-can-eat until they’re gone. We have not run out yet. In the last couple of years, we’ve always had plenty.”
The event requires between 150 and 200 volunteers to manage the crowd of 1,000 to 1,200 each year. Organizers are hoping to see the fundraiser continue to grow.
“It’s really a community event even though it’s organized by the churches,” Blankenship said. “It speaks well to the Fredericksburg community and the local companies that help us along the way.”
