Laguna Beach community gathers for return of chili cook-off and pet parade
Community members looking to add some spice to their weekend had their chance on Saturday, as the Laguna Real Estate Charitable Assistance Fund brought back its annual chili cook-off and pet parade.
First introduced to the coastal community in 1997, the event returned for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic — and with no small degree of cuteness.
Animal lovers descended upon the Neighborhood Congregational Church to support the fundraiser, which primarily benefited the Laguna Beach Animal Shelter and the Blue Bell Foundation for Cats.
Parade entry categories included Most Handsome Male, Prettiest Female, Best Costume, Cutest Baby, Most Gorgeous Senior and Happiest Rescue.
Rolo, a feline who came home from CatCon in Pasadena to Cole and Elizabeth Roberts of Irvine, won Best Costume and tied for first in the Happiest Rescue contest. The social media star wowed the judges by turning full gangster, completing the look with a custom jacket, sunglasses and a gold chain.
Elizabeth Roberts said they were honored to have Rolo receive the recognition. Rolo has proven well-suited for public life since his adoption, when he fell asleep in Cole’s arms on the two-hour car ride home.
“It’s definitely something very special, and it is a growing niche out there,” Elizabeth Roberts said. “There’s definitely a lot of adventure cats that have started to come about, for sure. With Rolo, we started him as a kitten when we noticed that he was OK with car rides.
“Most kittens that I have taken in my experience do not like car rides. They get nervous, they cry, they whine, and they don’t feel comfortable the entire time, so it really definitely depends on a cat’s personality.”
Liz Comerford, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty, hoisted the trophy for the winning chili after helping prepare it for the Charitable Assistance Fund.
Now a contributor to three winning entries in the chili cook-off, Comerford opined that there is no set way to make a championship chili.
“My recipe is no recipe,” Comerford said. “I don’t follow a recipe. … A little of this, a lot of that.”
The winning booth did not lack for potential add-ons, providing its taste testers with optional ingredients such as cilantro, scallion and sour cream.
“We had cilantro, we had scallion, we had squeeze of lime,” Comerford said. “Everyone told me … what put mine over was the finishing squeeze of lime on top, which I think it’s in agreement. That chili had an entire grill full of peppers and chiles that I charred on the grill before [they were] chopped up and put in, so maybe that was my secret.”
Rosie Taylor, a Santa Ana resident and a winner in the 54th World Championship Chili Cook-off in 2021, was among the judges for the chili contest.
The Laguna Beach fire and police departments also competed.
The Laguna Real Estate Charitable Assistance Fund, a public benefit corporation consisting of Realtors and affiliates, has raised more than $1.3 million for community nonprofits and individuals in need since being created in 2004.
Suzanne Taylor, the president of the Charitable Assistance Fund, said the nonprofit group supports various causes, including seniors and the arts. The group also has a fund that provides grants to Realtors and affiliates in need.
“The goal is twofold,” Taylor said of Saturday’s get-together. “One, to have a chili cook-off, and two, to let people show us their pets and all the different categories of pets. We added a new one this year, which was the Top Pet In All Categories, and we had not had that before. We had been given a piece of art from Faux Paw Artique Gallery, and we gave that as the grand prize for the pet, but we also had ribbons for everyone. It was fun. It was a little hot for the animals, but it was fun.”
Artist Debby Carman provided the artwork with some puppy-dog-eyed friends and a black cat for the grand prize in the pet parade, which featured largely cats and dogs. The finale featured a wagon full of rescues, a couple of which dared to escape their open-air mode of transportation.
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