South Coast Business Alliance Presents Oktoberfest Next Saturday
The South Coast Business Alliance is throwing a giant party on Saturday, October 5 and all of the money raised goes directly to programs that help at-risk kids.
The SCBA's 18th Annual Oktoberfest celebration will be held from 3 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. under a giant tent on Pope's Island in New Bedford.
Christian Gwozdz-Silveira, the co-chair of this year's Oktoberfest, joined Townsquare Sunday and spoke about this year's event and the charitable efforts made by the SCBA.
"A lot of people think this is just a one-day festival or party, but there's a serious side to it," Gwozdz-Silveira said. "We are all volunteers. We direct all the money raised towards at-risk young people in our community. We fund a lot of different programs to keep kids off the streets."
In addition to a variety of craft beers, this year's Oktoberfest will offer a full bar, serving any type of craft cocktail you desire. There will also be food trucks on hand and top-notch musical entertainment from Craig DeMelo and bands Autumn Drive, Off Kilter, Morrissey Boulevard and 7 Day Weekend.
Early bird tickets can be obtained for $15 at nboktoberfest.com . Tickets are $20 at the door on the day of the event. Drink and food tickets are separate.
Gwozdz-Silveira has looked at the numbers, and he believes this will be a record-breaking year for Oktoberfest.
"We have doubled our sponsorship income from $52,000 to $104,000, and that's before we add in admission tickets and drink tickets," he said.
Gwozdz-Silveira said that over the 18-year run of Oktoberfest, the SCBA has awarded about $1 million to community organizations and projects to help others in need.
"This past year we donated back-packs and funded a Community Day for kids in a New Bedford housing development, we provided funding for the Children's Advocacy Center in Bristol County to help counsel and treat abused children, and we donated to different community centers to keep kids busy during the summer," he said.
The complete interview with Christian Gwozdz-Silveira can be heard here:
If you would like your organization featured on Townsquare Sunday, please email the host at .
