On Saturday August 24th the United Fire Company #1 and the Cutchogue Fire Department Ladies Auxiliary hosted their 67th Annual Chicken Barbecue.
This annual event has grown since it's beginning to serve over 3200 people each year.
Considered "Long Island's Largest Chicken Barbecue" the event takes place each year on the fourth Saturday in August, and for many families, this event has officially marked the end of the summer on the North Fork.
Perfect weather consisting of sunny skies and temperatures in the near 80's set the set the stage for another successful event.
Because of our new firehouse construction, this year's event was forced to be held at an alternative location at Peconic Bay Vineyards in Cutchogue. The committee has worked tirelessly over the past 6 months to plan the barbecue and overcome any logistical associated with the new site.
This year,'s barbecue was hopefully better than ever. The Cutchogue Fire Department was pleased to serve the over three thousand smiling faces in person during the night under the "Big Tent" and in take-out. , CFD members began their day at 8 o'clock in the morning finalizing preparations for the barbecue.
Volunteers over the course of the morning began husking over 7000 ears of corn, preparing over 1000 pounds of potato salad, sliced peaches, and cucumbers for the homemade salads, prepared by the CFD Auxiliary.
Shortly after 12 o'clock the fires were lit to cook the over 3600 halves of chicken needed to serve the hungry barbecue goers. Throughout the afternoon the smell of BBQ chicken and smoke filled the air around Cutchogue.
At 3:30 p.m., chickens were served as the sold out crowd lined up to be seated under the tent. This would continue until the last ticket holder was seated at nearly 9:00 pm.
In what has now become a CFD tradition, the CFD Marching Band entered the tent for a special performance to close out the night to the delight of everyone attending.
The Officers and Members of the Cutchogue Fire Department and the CFD Ladies Auxiliary would like to thank our membership, the many volunteers, CFD family members, local businesses and members of the community for their continued support of this annual fundraising event.
Thank you to chairman Christian Figurniak and all of the CFD members for your hard work throughout the week to make this 67th Annual Chicken Barbecue a huge success.
Thank you to the Peconic Bay Vineyard for allowing us to have "Chicken in the Vineyard", along with thanks to your staff and the Soloviev family for your support.
Thank you to Stony Brook University Eastern Long Island Hospital for being the corporate sponsor of this years event, as well as all of our other banner sponsors and raffle supporters. Your continued support is greatly appreciated.
Thank you to the Mattituck & Southold Fire Departments who stood by providing Fire and EMS coverage during the event, as well as the Southold Town Police and NYS Police.
Other organizations that assisted us with logistical help and donated equipment include:
Bruan Seafood A.W. Glover Trucking Coastline Cesspool & Drain Mattituck Lions Club Suffolk County Fire-Rescue Pindar Vineyards Mattituck-Cutchogue School District Southold Town Highway Dept.
We are truly grateful for the help and support.
Please check back, more pictures will be posted as they become available.
It was great to have the community back with us to celebrate this great summer event.
We eagerly look forward to next year!
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Drone Photos by Garrett Lake |