On August 15th, at Highwood's Garlic Festival, over 50 contestants will be vying for the right to claim that THEY have the Most Terrific Tomato in Town, in the Highwood Historical Society's 11th Annual Totally Terrific Tomato Contest. Tomatoes are weighed, measured and inspected for perfection. There is no joking around in the judging, Highwood takes its gardening very seriously. Their garden-to-plate approach to life is part of what makes living in Highwood so completely Deeeelicious!
While many contestants live in neighboring communities, their Highwood-born gardening traditions are deeply rooted. Like Katie Scarlett of Gone with the Wind, "It's the land" that gives Highwoodian's their strength. The land is all about home, family, tradition and love. All of Highwood's residents and any member of the Highwood Historical Society are eligible to participate.
There are two First Place prizes - a $100.00 Gift Certificate from Pastificio or a $100.00 Gift Certificate from Poeta's for The Most Terrific Tomato in Town and The Peoples Choice. EVERYONE coming to the Garlic Fest can vote for the People's Choice. Those votes with quarters, nickels and dollar bills help support the Highwood Historical Society. This is an urgently important fundraiser for our society. So please let your voice be heard, support our society and VOTE for your favorite plum, green AND San Marzano tomato!
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The Tomato Contest isn't ALL about the Tomato. It's all about Highwood's History and the Highwood Homes Project! The Terrific Tomato Contest initially began to attract long-time residents of Highwood to participate in sharing their pictures and stories about their own history and the history of their homes. Much to their surprise, the members of the Society discovered that Highwood’s own backyard gardens rivaled anything you would find in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy -- Hanging flowers, zucchini that stretched from garage rooftops to the ground, fig trees, avocado trees and row after row of vegetables (and flowers) of all sorts. The gardens took our breath away and the discovery added to the rich story we had already discovered about Highwood.
The Historical Societies goal is to have our residents (current and past) share pictures and stories of the homes they grew up in and the people that lived there - stories about siblings, parents, grandparents, and great grandparents. We have many centenarians in town, many who still participate in gardening, this is an opportunity to collect and mark their contribution to the community. We have had great great great grandchildren, many years removed from Highwood, come back 100 years later to gather information about family members. The Highwood Historical Society is committed to securing the information for generations to come. But we can't do it without your photos and stories to mark their place and YOURS, in Highwood's History.
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If you think you have the most Terrific Tomato in Town, there is still time to enter the Tomato contest. The deadline is August 14th. No tomatoes will be accepted after that. Call 847-433-2984 to enter your tomato or send a message to Tomato@HighwoodHistory.com. Members of Highwood's Historical Society or past residents of Highwood that live far away can participate in the Highwood Homes Project by sending stories and pictures to Tomato@HighwoodHistory.com. Don't forget to vote for the People's Choice. See you on the 15th.
