For the second year, MarVal Food Stores in Escalon played host to a fundraiser, a car wash that benefited both the Escalon cheerleading and flag football programs.
Staged in the MarVal parking lot on McHenry Avenue, the flag football players and the cheerleaders were kept busy on Saturday, July 20 with a steady stream of customers.
Also on hand were head flag football coach Steve Largent and assistant Steve Reisenbeck, helping to coordinate the efforts.
Several booths were set up outside the market, including one that was offering free samples of award-winning sausages crafted by artisan butcher Michael Porter out of the Valley Springs MarVal location. A variety of sausages were available for sampling and, along with chips and a drink, the free meal was offered to all who came by.
MarVal provided two $50 gift cards to be raffled off at the conclusion of the fundraising event.
Store Manager Victor Perez said they were glad to help out once again.
“We coordinated with the high school, this is our second annual car wash event so it’s just to raise money for our flag football team and cheerleading squad; all profits go to those two programs,” he noted.
Porter was on hand to provide information about his products and MarVal offered some coupons for the artisan sausages as well.
“We have some coupons just to get the word out,” Perez said of highlighting the sausages, and also said a number of vendors donated items for the event, along with MarVal providing the sno-cone vendor, Heavens Flurries.
“A lot of practice,” Porter said, smiling, when asked how he became a national champion artisan sausage maker. “A lot of practice.”
He recently won Champion Louisiana Hot Links honors while competing at the American Cured Meat Championships in Charleston, South Carolina.
All MarVal stores carry his artisan sausage products, not just the Valley Springs store where he is based.
“I started at a small butcher shop; it burned down after being there for nine years and MarVal offered me a job,” Porter explained, adding that his focus is on providing good food for kids when it comes to creating his unique style of sausage.
“I get mac and cheese with the noodles and everything in it,” he said of one of his kid-friendly creations. “I have pizza sausage, and I think of camping so I made a chili cheese sausage that has chili and cheese up inside it.”
A German brat, 805 beer and the mac and cheese sausages were available to sample on Saturday.
“Turned out to be a good event, a little hot but it’s still good,” Perez said. “It has actually been hectic but that’s a good thing.”
The car wash ran from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; the assembly-line style of players working featured a pre-rinse station to loosen up any dirt and debris, a thorough soaping and scrubbing by the next group of workers, then an overall rinse with a power washer, followed by a hand drying and windshield wiping. The car wash was offered for a $20 donation, which will directly benefit the cheerleading and flag football programs at Escalon High School.
Sponsors for the event included Billion Dollar Brand pistachios, C&S Wholesale Grocers, Bimbo Bakeries USA, Frito Lay, Coca-Cola, Fiji Natural Artesian Water and Pepsi.
