King of the Wing Contest Raises Over $139K for Nana Baby Children’s Home!
ST. THOMAS, VI, November 27, 2024 - The check presentation ceremony for the 13th annual King of the Wing contest took place on Wednesday, November 27th, 2024 at the Nana Baby Children's Home (NBH) on St. Thomas. Alpine and White Bay Group, organizers of the competition, revealed the donation amount from this year's event which took place on June 8th, and presented a check in the amount of $139,059.00 to Executive Director Darian Hairston and her NBH staff.
The King of the Wing contest is an annual chicken wing cook-off held at Magens Bay Beach. Special guests – rapper duo R. City personally crowned the winners and performed live for the crowd! KOW 2019 winner, Chef Taj returned as a judge this year, joining content creator and social media influencer @MisoHungrry, the Zeus Network's Janeisha John, Chef Sunil Sharma, and KOW 2022 winner, Cory Dezendorf. Teams consisting of top local restaurants, businesses, organizations, and chicken wing enthusiasts prepared an impressive variety of delicious wings to raise money for a great cause! The contest was audited by Deloitte. and this year's winner, in the Restaurant Division, was "Nomads Bar & Grille," and "Electric Factory Energy" won best Overall wing and the Non-Restaurant Division.
In addition to being the island’s most anticipated, family-friendly culinary and community event, King of the Wing serves as a crucial fundraising platform for local charities. All proceeds from this year’s event were donated to the Nana Baby Children's Home (NBH), a 501(c)3 organization. NBH provides shelter for foster care children in the US Virgin Islands.
"King of the Wing highlights and celebrates the culinary culture of the Virgin Islands community. We enjoy organizing an event that continues to increase its charitable impact every year," said Charles Kim, Managing Partner of Alpine. He continued, "Our chosen charitable beneficiary receives 100% of the profits from KOW.
Starting in 2010, King of the Wing has now raised over $922,682 for local non-profits over the years. KOW 2024 exceeded expectations with thousands of people in attendance, 36 participating teams, and $139,059.00 raised for the Nana Baby Home! Should you have any questions, please call Vernon Araujo at 340-714-2020, email kingofthewingvi@gmail.com, or visit www.kowvi.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. To find out more about the Nana Baby Home, visit their website at https://nanababyhome.com/.
(Left to right) John Hairston (NBH), Mark Stiehler (Nomads), Kathy McAllister (Nomads), Vernon Araujo (Alpine), Darian Hairston (NBH), Sonora Meiling (Electric Factory Energy), Vinsun Bryan (Electric Factory Energy), Charles Kim (Alpine), Chaka Edwards (NBH), Tiarra Kappel (NBH), Anna Paeiwonsky (NBH)