Our 20th Festival of the Bean brought some fall flair to this past weekend as Blacknall members, attenders, and friends gathered at Camp Chestnut Ridge to taste their way through an array of chili, play lawn games, and make s'mores by a fire. The winners of our chili competition (with recipe names) were:

"Lord of the Bean" (top overall): Bo Harrison, "Refiner's Fire"
1st place: Andrew McCrary, "The Old Familiar"
2nd place: Meredith Milke, "It's Bean a Lot"
3rd place (tie): Kris Barman, "Cluck and Kernel Chili," and Meredith Miller, "Cinco Pimientos"

Tom Kouwe also earned recognition for best recipe name with "Chili of the Valley."

Bo’s winning "recipe" came from a chef's touch — there was no set measurement of ingredients — but his mix of beef and pork sausage with beans, tomatoes, onions, peppers, and secret spices won over our judges! (A last-minute addition of brown sugar helped, too.) It was Bo’s second time winning “Lord of the Bean” after taking home the top prize at the very first festival. “I didn’t have any left over, so I need to make some more now,” he said following his win.

Thank you to our Deacons and the many volunteers who helped with shopping, setup, cleanup, and running all our activities at the festival! Check out some moments with our community below: