FOPBSS parents vie for chili championship

Friends of Pacific Beach Secondary Schools (FOPBSS) held its first chili cook-off fundraiser on Nov. 5 at the San Diego Mission Bay Boat and Ski Club. The bayfront setting was filled with Pacific Beach Middle and Mission Bay High parents, teachers, and community members eager to taste nearly a dozen chili recipes, some of which were family secrets passed down through multiple generations. Local band 8 West and PBMS music director John O’Donnell played music into the night while guests dined on various blends of flavor and heat all in the name of raising money for a good cause.

More than $2,000 was collected at the cook-off for FOPBSS, whose programs serve both PBMS and MBHS. The FOPBSS parent-teacher organization pays for academic, extra-curricular, and athletic resources not funded by the school district, including field trips, teacher grants, capital improvements, language resources, a second elective period at PBMS, and sports programs at the high school.

Pacific Beach Middle teacher Ashley Prevo and speech pathologist Natalie Anderson sampled the chili at FOPBSS’ first cook-off fundraiser. COURTESY PHOTO

FOPBSS fundraising chairperson Maria Mikus estimates that every student at both schools is touched by FOPBSS fundraising in more ways than one throughout the year. “Events like this one remind us that we are one tight-knit community,” said Mikus, also a parent with students at both schools. “There are families that choice into our schools from as far away as Encinitas, Santee, La Mesa, and Imperial Beach because the programs are so great and worth the commute. Having the opportunity to bring everyone together while raising money for our kids and their education is priceless. Plus, the chili was delicious.”

Three parents walked away with titles for their award-winning chilis: best vegetarian, spiciest, and best overall. While attendees ate their fill of chili and all the fixin’s, it only left them hungry for more. FOPBSS has a number of events planned throughout the school year. But planning for next year’s cook-off has already begun, and the excitement – and aroma of thick and hearty chili – is in the air.

PBMS and MBHS offer tours to prospective families each month throughout the school year. For information, or to find out about the District’s School Choice program, visit pbmiddle.sandiegounified.org and missionbay.sandiegounified.org.