LOIS KINDLE FILE PHOTO
Baker Tiffany Williams Wilson, aka Mrzstickyfingertips, and her amazing cupcakes will return this year for Death by Chocolate to help raise funds for the East Bay High School Athletics. The event will be Feb. 10 at the Summerfield Golf Club, 13050 Summerfield Blvd., Riverview.
By LOIS KINDLE
Chocolate lovers and wine connoisseurs will think they’ve died and gone to heaven Feb. 10 at this year’s Death by Chocolate fundraiser at the Summerfield Crossings Golf Club.
The deliciously tantalizing event will take place from 7 to 10 p.m. Feb. 10 to raise funds for the East Bay High School athletic programs.
Chocolate confections of all kinds (and a few non-chocolate items) will be prepared for an all-you-can-eat buffet prepared by area bakers Tiffany Williams Wilson (Mrzstickyfingertips Cupcakes and More); Lynn Kessel; LeAnne Crabtree (LeAnne’s Old Fashioned Cookies); Barb Lewis; and Carolyn Ashley Hubbel (SugarBritches Cake Co.). Wine samples will be provided by PRP Wine International, and area restaurants will be providing appetizer items.
Wine will be available for purchase by the bottle or case for those who find something they like, with a portion of the sales going to the high school. And the golf club’s bar will be open for the purchase of mixed drinks and discounted chocolate-themed concoctions.
“It’s a great event, it helps our youth, and everything is decadently delicious,” said Beth Stein, who was at last year’s event. “The atmosphere is a wonderful mix of Goth and chocolate. You just want to eat and die happily.”
Admission is $20 in advance and $25 at the door.
This will be the third Death by Chocolate event hosted by Amanda Marrero, owner of Fringe Benefits Salon in Ruskin. Her goal this year is to raise $8,000.
“Being involved in sports teaches kids life lessons they carry into adulthood,” said Marrero, an East Bay High alumnus. “They’re the future of this community, and it’s important we give them every opportunity for success now.”
Each athletic team has been charged with collecting silent auction items to raise money for its own needs. The wrestling team, for example, is in desperate need of new uniforms, and the baseball team needs funding to stock concessions during its games. It also needs replacement batting cages, money for field maintenance and more.
Anything collected beyond the money raised by the teams’ silent auction items will go the East Bay’s general fund, which is disbursed by the school’s athletic boosters for discretionary expenses, like sports physicals for low-income students.
LOIS KINDLE FILE PHOTO
Lynn Kessel will treat Death by Chocolate attendees again this year to her decadent baked goods at Death by Chocolate, which was moved to a larger venue this year to accommodate the more than 250 guests expected this year.
Death by Chocolate will also feature live music by singer/guitarist Matt Billor, who sings everything from Frank Sinatra to Bob Marley. A variety of vendors also will be on hand: Stella & Dot; Lipsense; LuLaRoe; It Works; and the Trunk Show Ladies Boutique. Vendor applications are still available for $35.
Thus far, items for the silent auction, sans whatever the high school students are bringing, include:
• certificates for in-home, PRP wine tastings;
• a party in a cooler;
• a gift card/gift certificate tree valued at $200 or more;
• a large beauty basket featuring hair services and products from Fringe Benefits Salon valued at $300;
• entry into Capt. Lori Deaton’s upcoming Reel Ladies-Only, Most-Species Fishing Tourney, as well as a one-day admission to her popular Reel Ladies Fishing Workshops;
• a Summerfield Crossings Golf Club foursome;
• all kinds of themed gift baskets and more.
Death by Chocolate event sponsors are Zipperer’s Funeral Home, McRoberts Sales and Fringe Benefits Salon. Other sponsorships are available for $300 to $500.
COURTESY PHOTO
Amanda Marrero, East Bay High School alumnus and owner of Fringe Benefits Salon, founded Death by Chocolate to raise money for her alma mater’s athletic programs.
“Very Important Person” (VIP) tables for four can be reserved for $200, which includes admission for four, a bottle of champagne or wine and a thank you gift.
Tickets for Death by Chocolate can be purchased at deathbychocolate.eventzilla.net, the Summerfield Crossings Golf Club, SouthShore Chamber of Commerce, Fringe Benefits Salon or any East Bay High School athletic coach.
For more information, call 813-967-5811.