Pizza tasting event in Dunn Meadow raises $3,000 for pair of charities

A crisp and windy day allowed the smell of pizza to waft throughout campus Friday afternoon, tempting students to partake in a pizza competition where all proceeds went to charities.\n“The event was all about team work,” Pizza Mania organizer sophomore Marc Uible said. “Really good people came together to participate and the event really showed it.”\nThe $3,000 raised will go to the Salvation Army and former Kelley School of Business staff member Melinda Turpin whose infant daughter has accrued more than $100,000 in medical bills.\nMost students saw it as a way to sample the different types of pizza Bloomington has to offer.\n“My friends are in a sorority and told me about Pizza Mania,” freshman Allison Joyce said of the largely greek crowd at the event. “It was cool to try a slice from each place without ordering an entire pizza.”\nAt $7 for an all-you-can-eat atmosphere, students took advantage of the boxes and boxes of pizza offered to them – forcing some vendors to run out and deliver more.\n“In the future, we will try to get more vendors and shoot for an even bigger crowd,” Uible said.\nStudents were able to choose from Aver’s, Bucceto’s, Fazoli’s, Greek’s Pizzeria, Mad Mushroom, Monroe County Pizza Department, Papa John’s, Pizza Express, Rockit’s and Swing-In Pizza. The competition for best overall pizza went to Bucceto’s, with Rockit’s for best cheese pizza, Monroe County Pizza Department for best specialty pizza and Pizza Express for best pepperoni pizza.\n“With the guitar music and Frisbee everywhere, it feels just like a barbecue,” sophomore Brant Hawkins said. “Maybe next year they’ll let me on stage to play.”\nEven though Hawkins wished he had been performing this year, everyone in attendance seemed pleased with local guitarist Robbie Gold. With a mellow and acoustic style, Gold covered artists such as Incubus, O.A.R. and John Mayer.\nThe event began with a photo shoot with eight underprivileged children associated with the Salvation Army. Members from the Turpin family were also present at the event.\n “I read the story about the family’s troubles and feel glad to have the opportunity to help out,” freshman Christy Shirreffs said of her participation in the event. \nShirreffs was in charge of the Aver’s table, doling out one of the crowd favorites: the “Cream & Crimson.”\n“We got lucky that it turned out to be such a beautiful day,” Uible said. “There will be improvements, but this event will definitely be going on again next year.”