“Summer’s here. And so are the food trucks!”
For the two weeks leading up to Sunday, June 26th, radio stations in the Greater Philadelphia area aired the Fox Chase Food Truck Festival commercial to more than 600,000 people. Social media continued to spread the word. Even residents of New York and New Jersey heard the exciting news: The World Mission Society Church of God in Philadelphia was hosting its very first food truck festival!
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- Members and guests gather around live performances while munching of various food truck offerings.
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- Food trucks parked around the Church of God’s perimeter, offering a mix of everything from savory to sweet.
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- Neighbors from near and far joined the Fox Chase Food Truck Festival and supported the Montgomery County Summer Meals Program.
Members of the Church of God in Philadelphia wanted to figure out a fun and interactive way to engage the community. Thus, the Fox Chase Food Truck Festival was born. The event centered around raising funds for the Montgomery County Summer Meals Program, a program that supplies children living below the poverty line with meals during the summer months when school is not in session. And the food trucks were more than willing to leave their Center City locations to support the great cause.
A total of nine food trucks offered mobile gourmet delicacies that day. Nick’s Roast Beef served its famous roast beef sandwiches; The Cow and The Curd offered up its signature batter-fried cheese curds; The Happy Pita featured gluten-free and vegetarian options; Calle Del Sabor was known for their coconut shrimp tacos; guests raved over Gigi & Big R’s Caribbean Soul Food’s fried fish; Baby Blue BBQ’s served savory items, such as caramelized pig candy (a.k.a. bacon) and mac ’n’ cheese; and Sweet Box Cupcakes satisfied everyone’s sweet tooth.
More than 820 guests came from near (down the street) and far (out-of-state) to taste the scrumptious food truck food and support the Montgomery County Summer meals program. While going from truck to truck, members of the World Mission Society Church of God introduced various live performances. Members volunteered to sing, deliver poetry and dance. Local Philly dance groups—Restyles Crew and In Da Clutch Entertainment—entertained the crowd with upbeat music and breakdance moves. Meanwhile, children enjoyed the bounce house and face painting stations.
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- Church of God members entertained guests by singing, dancing and reciting poetry.
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- The audience loved the live performances, which added flair to an already sweet event.
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- Families enjoyed quality time together by making an outing out of the Fox Chase Food Truck Festival.
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- Children have fun with police officers during the Fox Chase Food Truck Festival.
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- Volunteers got the party started by dancing with guests, even off the stage!
Neighbors in the Jenkintown area expressed delightful surprise at the Church of God’s food truck event. Many guests took the time to learn more about the Church and its beliefs at the Church of God tent. Videos and Bible seminars allowed guests to understand the reason for the Church’s desire to serve its community with the heart of Heavenly Mother.
At the conclusion of the event, Kristina Robinson, Director of the Montgomery County Summer Food Service Program, thanked the Church of God for making a difference in the program and, ultimately, the children the program supports. With the $8,000 raised through the Fox Chase Food Truck Festival, the program plans to upgrade their delivery equipment with refrigerated trucks to make the process more efficient and reach more children.
I was fortunate enough to attend this event. I had so much fun watching the performances and trying all the various types of food the trucks were offering. I hope this event will be held again next summer!
During the event of the food truck festival I felt joy, excitement ,peace, and love in the atmosphere.
I have never been to a food truck festival before, I am glad that I was able to attend. This event was very well organized and the entertainment was phenomenal. The faces there were bright and friendly. I will definitely attend another event like this in the future.
This was my first time at a food truck festival and I know for sure it will not be the last time! i was very impressed at how well organized it was. They had activities for the whole family and also great entertainment. We had a wonderful time and I truly enjoyed the variety of food that was offered. I hope the Fox Chase Food Truck Festival 2016 was the first of many more to come.
I had such a good time when I came to this event. This was the first time that I’ve ever been to a food truck festival, so I didn’t know what to expect. The food was good, the performances were amazing, and overall atmosphere was great. I hope there’s another food truck festival this year, because I will definitely come again and bring my family with me.
I heard that this will be a yearly event! I’m so excited for this year’s Food Truck Festival! I got to eat from 3 different food trucks and they were all absolutely delicious. The performances were also really good. I’ll keep checking the website to see when the next festival will be.
I was so thankful that my daughter and I had the opportunity to attend this event. We have never attended a food truck festival before nor have we ever eaten from a food truck before. So we were very excited about this event. It was by far one of the greatest events we have ever attended. Many people from different locations came and attended this event. The atmosphere was great and positive!! You heard children playing and laughing at the kids zone. My daughter had the time of her life! The food trucks were very delicious and the performances were amazing. My daughter and I will definitely attend another food truck festival held by the World Mission Society Church of God.
Wow this event looked like a blast. Nothing better then being around good people and eating good food. I’m definitely not missing the next one. Great job Church of God
Sensationally heartwarming summer day: thank you World Mission Society Church of God for fighting for such a valiant cause with so much tasteful passion.
Hunger is a real and common enemy, especially in poverty stricken food deserts. But considering that Montgomery County preserves considerable affluence, it never dawned on me that there are still groups of children living in pockets of severe scarcity struggling with starvation during summer when school cafeterias too go on break. These children depend on the school system for proper nutrition and nourishment throughout the academic year, and then in essence must fend for themselves during the summer vacation. So, I was truly appalled about this bleak reality for these kids. Then, the Church of God brought light to the situation and came to the rescue. Wow, what a relief that this church and the members would go out of their way to take care of the youth by: raising awareness; directly contributing out-of-pocket with their hearts, feet, and wallets; and involving and engaging community support for a grander impact. This church positively influenced their respective neighbors’ childhood as true heroes and heroines.
Thank you again for all your A+ contributions to society. Please keep up the great work! With sincere admiration, I look up to you, and I will always support you Zion.