Carolyn Wells’ Thoughts on Future Legends of BBQ Event

The Future Legends of  Barbeque event is unique, in that it is a competition where the kids do the cooking. Each team has one supervising adult, but the children are responsible for the food- from the preparation, to the grilling, to the presentation. The event, officially licensed by the KCBS, was created to benefit the Henderson County Young Leaders Program (HCYLP), a non-profit group that helps provide camp scholarships for children who might not otherwise have the opportunity.

The goal is to positively influence the lives of these children while helping them understand that their personal choices and actions impact themselves, their family, peers and ultimately the community. And community is really what barbeque is all about. “Barbeque has always been about more than just food,” says Wells. “It’s a time-honored tradition that brings people together. It’s a form of socialization.” So much so, that it is even used by some Fortune 500 companies as a team-building exercise. It is a way to learn how to be a team player,while allowing the participants to have a great time. This same idea works just as well for children.

At the first Future Legends of Barbeque competition in 2009, 20 teams came together to compete in the areas of Best Ribs, Best Sauce, Competitor’s Choice and Best Theme.  These areas were judged by an impressive team, including barbeque legend Mike Mills and his daughter and co-author Amy Mills Tunnicliffe, Checkered Pig owner Tommy Houston, Founder of the Tryon BBQ Festival, Jim Tabb, and, of course, Carolyn Wells.

“The judges were all enthusiastic and happy to be in the beautiful setting at Camp Greystone and working with these kids. The kids were so intense. They were hanging on every word and were captivated. It was fun just to watch them,” Wells said of the event.  “This type of event is very unique, but it fits hand-in-glove with the vision of KCBS, which is to celebrate, teach, preserve, and promote barbeque as a culinary technique, sport and art form.”

This year should be even bigger and better, although Carolyn Wells was already very impressed with what she experienced. “It was stellar. We’ve never participated in an event quite like this one. I can’t tell you how impressed I was. It was almost perfect.”