Station House Chili Fest recognizes safety groups in community

Tufts Dining Services will host the 12th annual Station House Chili Fest in Carmichael Dining Center todayfrom 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., open to local police officers, firefighters and emergency medical services teams, as well as members of Tufts University Police Department, Tufts Fire Safety, Tufts Emergency Medical Services, students and faculty.

The event, which takes places during October's "National Fire Prevention Month," aims to recognize those who help keep students and the local community safe, while also promoting education about fire safety in a fun environment, according to Director of Dining and Business Services Patti Klos. Chili Fest combines important aspects of campus life, including tradition, respect and culinary creativity, she added.

“A whole bunch of thoughts coalesced into the realization that we work very hard to nourish our student body, particularly those that live on campus, but that there are folks behind the scenes that help make those places warm and safe,” she said.

The menu this year will include old favorites, like Cincinatti Chili, as well as new items, such as Seafood Chili and Turkey Chili, according to Unit Manager of Carmichael Peter Kourafalos. Following the recipes of the chosen chilies, the chefs in Carmichael began to prepare the meal one day in advance of the event.

Approximately 1,200 to 1,400 people are expected to attend the event, which makes catering to everyone's needs and including a variety of opitions extremely important, Kourafalos noted.

Lyza Bayard, communications specialist of Dining and Business Services, explained that the purpose of the event is to serve the people who serve the Tufts community. Dining Services created invitations and flyers reflecting themes of warmth and spice -- key elements of both fire and chili -- to get the word out among Tufts’ public safety groups and their counterparts in Medford and Somerville.

“I have made a concerted effort to find out who we should communicate to and how to do that," she said. "It’s worked well, and [the local community] feels invited and welcomed.”

There are approximately 30-50 people total working in the creative, planning, publicizing and cooking processes, according to Bayard. She said that a big part of publicizing the event happens through communication between Tufts’ public safety groups and their respective counterparts in Medford and Somerville, trying to make the people in the local community feel invited.

The original idea for Chili Fest came from David Kelley, former unit manager of Carmichael, who had developed good relationships with many of the public and fire safety faculty at Tufts, Klos said. He hoped to spread awareness about the work firefighters contribute in the community since two of his sons became emergency medical technicians.

Klos noted that although Chili Fest continues to grow in popularity, it has stayed true to Tufts tradition and has not changed significantly over the years.