The Franciscan Center, a nonprofit ministry, is pleased to announce its 5th annual Wine at the Shrine event. On October 12th, the fall wine tasting festival and fundraiser will be held on the grounds of the Shrine of St. Anthony in Ellicott City.
The event benefits two ministries working to provide fresh, organic food to those facing food insecurity in Baltimore. Little Portion Farm is a three-acre farm that donates 100 percent of all harvested produce, with a majority going to the Franciscan Center in Baltimore where the culinary team prepares hot meals every weekday for more than 400 clients.
The outdoor celebration features activities for the entire family. The event highlights wine and beer tasting, craft vendors, food trucks (Greek on the Street and Moes Slice of Life), yard games, live music, kids’ activities, hayrides, pumpkin picking and painting, bounce houses, farm tours, and an on-site service project.
Local Maryland wineries and breweries include Boordy, Olney, Penn Oak, Ricco, Stone House Urdan Winery, Sugarloaf, Wine Collective.
Cooking demonstations in the kids kitchen will be conducted by Taste Wise and dessert demonstration by Turf Valley. A wine education class will be led by the Atlas Group.
The event is sponsored by Medstar Health, COPT Defense Properties, Gallagher Evelius and Jones LLP, Bollinger Energy.
General entry ticket prices vary: Adult Tasting Glass – $45, Adult Designated Driver – $25, Young Adult (10-20) – $10, Youth (under 10) – free.
To learn more about the event, visit https://www.wineattheshrine.org.
WHERE: Shrine of St. Anthony & Little Portion Farm, Ellicott City, Maryland 21042
WHEN: Saturday, October 12, 2024, 1:00 – 6:00 p.m.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Please contact Nicole Halsey or Natalie Van Buskirk at 410.952.2122/443.956.4765 or [email protected]/[email protected] respectively to receive media tickets to the event or to schedule a time prior to the event to promote the festivities.
The Franciscan Center is a nonprofit ministry. The mission of the Franciscan Center is to provide emergency assistance and supportive outreach to persons who are economically disadvantaged in an effort to assist them in realizing their self-worth and dignity as people of God. The nonprofit offers a continuum of care that includes food, clothing, emergency health services, counseling, and technology training to help clients become as self-sufficient as possible.
The Center’s Culinary Services offer a pantry program, and a hot lunch program, which feeds roughly 400-600 people daily at its W. 23rd Street location and local homeless encampments. The Franciscan Center serves 99% of scratch food. The food cooked and served is fresh and healthy, with produce and proteins coming from its own farm at the Shrine of St. Anthony, First Fruits Farm, and other local farms.
Additionally, the Center offers the Dignity Plates Culinary Training Academy, a 13-week program – zero-cost culinary workforce training program. To learn more about the Franciscan Center’s services, visit www.fcbmore.org.
The Franciscan Center is currently undergoing its first major renovation in 25 years and has launched a capital campaign to help fund the changes. The center offers a warm indoor dining room, client choice pantry, training kitchen for students in the culinary academy, computer lab and education center, clothing intake room, and a new Mace Street entrance.
About Little Portion Farm
Little Portion Farm is a ministry of the Franciscan Friars Conventual focused on providing fresh food to those in need while using sustainable farming methods to restore the health of our land. Since 2019, our first growing season, we have provided over 60,000 pounds of fresh produce to the Franciscan Center of Baltimore. Our 3-acre farm functions as an “agro-ecosystem,” with a diversity of plants and habitats to support the life of this “little portion” of creation. In addition to common annual vegetable crops, sections of the farm are dedicated to fruit trees, berries, as well as native flowering plants in an effort to provide habitat for pollinators and other beneficial insects to reduce pest insects. Our goal is not only to diversify the farm ecosystem, but also to be able to provide a wide range of healthy fruits and vegetables to those in need. To learn more, visit www.littleportionfarm.org.
