Are you ready to eat yourself into oblivion while at the same time supporting a worthy cause? If so, you’re in luck!  The SHARP Foundation has you covered in the month of April. Kicking off their annual A Taste for Life fundraiser will be the Mac and Cheese Cook-Off.

The SHARP Foundation is a Calgary organization that is committed to providing a continuum of care including housing, healthcare, and support to individuals infected or affected by HIV/AIDS. The SHARP Foundation develops services and programs for people needing palliative, long term, intermediate, and independent living resources. Their current development is a project called Carlyle Commons which will provide independent living for individuals with support resources on site. Carlyle Commons is named after the late Jeff Carlyle, the Treasurer and a volunteer for The SHARP Foundation for 8 years. Floyd Visser from SHARP says they thought this would be a great way to honor Jeff for all his amazing work with the organization.

If you think your mac and cheese is the tastiest of them all, then call the Calgary Eagle to register as a competitor. Then on April 15th, bring your best mac and cheese down to the Calgary Eagle for 6pm. Guests will be able to buy sample-size portions from each cook-off participant with all money raised going to The SHARP Foundation. Then judges will test each mac and cheese dish and judge the winner. If it’s you, you will not only have bragging rights until next year, but you will also win some prizes!

Last year A Taste for Life raised more than $38,000; if you count all the additional donations, the total was more than $80,000. All these funds stay in Calgary to provide needed resources and support courtesy of SHARP’s team, to individuals living with HIV/AIDS. Many of SHARP’s clients are highly vulnerable and at risk of homelessness. Many have histories which may include mental health struggles and addictions.

This year is the third annual A Taste for Life, taking place April 25th. Here is how it works. Calgary restaurants sign up with The SHARP Foundation. SHARP advertises the restaurants in places such as The Calgary Sun, social media, The SHARP Foundation website, and of course GayCalgary Magazine amonst many others. Then people like you go eat a meal at one of these fine participating establishments on April 25th, when 25% of the total bill will be donated directly to The SHARP Foundation. So all you have to do is eat! If you like, you could eat all three meals that day at a different participating restaurants.  Already signed up are Metropolitan Grill, Fiore’s, Halo, Escoba, Gypsy Piqniq, Blue Vinny and many more – a complete listing of all participating restaurants can be found at the SHARP Foundation’s website.  If you have a favorite restaurant that is not on the list, let the people at SHARP know so that they can try to convince them to partake. If you own or operate a restaurant and want to be a part of this fundraiser, contact The SHARP Foundation as soon as possible.

So mark your calendars for April 25th, and dine out at some great restaurants!