At food truck fest, rock out, pig out and help refugees
There’s a brand new festival in Pittsburgh with food trucks, live music, live art, games and raffles that will benefit a local refugee resettlement organization.
“Eats ‘N Beats” will be held from 2 to 8 p.m. Saturday at Pittsburgh Foodfor Park in Millvale.
Participating food trucks are Curly Tail Coffee, Cool Beans Taco Truck, BRGR, Miss Meatball, Burgh Bites, Doce Taqueria and McFeely’s Arctic Ice. The musicians are Ben Getkin, Morgan Erina, The Dumplings, The Gothees and Murder for Girls.
There also will be a raffle for a variety of prizes, including a $50 gift card for LeMont with two tickets to the Pittsburgh Symphony; a complimentary wine tasting for up to 10 people from Pittsburgh Winery; a $90 gift card for ‘Burgh Bits and Bites food tours; a haircut, style and mini facial from Sognatore Salon; four tickets to the Heinz History Center plus a $25 gift card for Tequila Cowboy; and a lithographed signed photo of Antonio Brown plus two tickets to the Roberto Clemente Museum.
This festival is a firsttime event for the Northern Area Multi-Service Center’s Community Assistance & Refugee Resettlement Department. When discussing a new fundraiser, staffers thought of the new Pittsburgh Food Park in Millvale, right down the river from the NAMS office in Sharpsburg.
“Everybody loves food and music,” said Jaime Turek, senior program coordinator, noting a foodand music-based festival is allowing the charitable organization to “reach out to a different demographic and bring in a younger, familybased crowd” to get to know aboutthe organization.
Liana Wool, an employment case manager who is co-organizing the festival with Ms. Turek, said she’s hopingfor at least 500 attendees the event’s first year.
Proceeds will benefit client which can look a little different for each refuge family, Ms. Turek explained. Some may need help with paying the rent, while others may need help with utility bills, transportation, food, seasonal clothing, back-to-school supplies or medical bills.
During the agency’s busiest year, it resettled 260 people.
Families who resettle through NAMS receive 90 days of intensive placement services, but families can remain connected to the agency for up to five years for help with things like Ms. Wool’s department — employment assistance, which includes help with finding a job, finding a better job, writing a resume, preparing for interviews, locating childcare and securing transportation, Ms. Wool said.
Many of the people who have already bought tickets for Eats ‘ N Beats are connected with NAMS in some way, Ms. Wool said. But staffers will be there, hosting a table with literature about their work so
those who don’t know about them can grow more familiar with what they do.
A $30 advance ticket ($35 at the door) covers one meal and drink. Children under 10 don’t need tickets and can get food a la carte. Advance tickets are available at eventbrite.com (search for “Eats N’ Beats”).