EAST PROVIDENCE — Good Neighbors Community Kitchen and Food Pantry along with the East Providence High School Career and Tech Center Culinary Department recently team up for an "All Fired Up!" cook-off fundraiser, silent auction and raffle Saturday, Nov. 4.

The event, which featured teams EPCTC Culinary students grouped with Good Neighbors staff, raised nearly $30,000 once expenses were deducted. All proceeds benefited Good Neighbors Community Kitchen and Food Pantry located in Riverside.

"Team Tuesday" took home the night's gold medal with its dish Healthy Chicken & Rice Casserole. The team included Good Neighbors volunteers Cathy Alteri, Nick Alteri, Judy Arruda and Mary Freitas. There EPHS CTC student assistants were Haley Duarte, Annabella Camello and Chassidy Reynolds.

"Team Friday" was awarded the silver medal for its Zucchini Lasagna. Good Neighbors members were Keith Daniel, Oscar Lange and Christopher Lange assisted by EPCTC students Nedric Ducot, James Schuller and Angelina Tavares.

"Team Wednesday" received the bronze medal for its dish Chicken & Artichokes in Sherry Sauce. Susan Pitt, Gregg Oehler and Tom Jean represented Good Neighbors with the aid of EPCTC students Morgan Marshall, James McShane and Katelyn Bolarinho.

By the numbers, the event drew some 150 attendees, including cooking teams; event sponsors donated $15,750; ticket sales raised $4,280; the online auction $7,969; the 50/50 raffle $202, the "mocktail" bar $400; the in-person auction $640; and other donations $760.

The Good Neighbors Community Kitchen is staffed by teams of mostly amateur chefs who volunteer their time to prepare hot meals for the less fortunate in our community.

These teams, who identify themselves by the day of the week that they serve, take pride in the delicious meals they are able to produce with a limited choice of ingredients that are available at the kitchen.

This led to some friendly competitive "trash-talk" at the kitchen that inspired the Good Neighbors leadership team including Kate Mushipi, Cassie Olaya, and Ginny McQueen, to hold a cooking competition to prove which team deserves the bragging rights.

The Good Neighbor's administrators approached EPCTC to gauge its interest and the idea was instantly embraced by Director Bob Hanlon and staff at the high school. The state-of-the-art Culinary program commercial kitchen and the spacious EPHS student commons easily hosted the event.

Said Hanlon, "We gladly accepted, and offered Chefs (Marie-Claire) McKillip and (Bill) Walker along with a dozen of their student-chefs to act as technical assistants to the competing teams. The result was a fun and successful featuring great food, community and family, laughs, great competition, raffles and auctions and a whole lot of 'Townie Pride.'...A huge thank you to all who contributed to this great cause."