EDWARDSVILLE — Sam Merkel loved food.
While Merkel was in and out of the hospital battling osteosarcoma, a childhood form of bone cancer she was diagnosed with in the summer of 2013, she watched the Food Channel and saw all the different restaurants at Disney World.
Since he was already 18, Make-A-Wish couldn’t ask him for a wish.
“They laid the red carpet for us,” said Sam’s mother, Dawn Merkel, who went to Disney World with him. She said, “I ate, ate, ate.”
Dawn and Bob Merkel got the idea for Bad to the Bone Chili Cook-Off, a memorial to Sam, who died on December 29, 2015, after a two-and-a-half-year battle with cancer.
“I thought it would be fun and I knew Sam would love it,” Dawn said. “He loved having a good time.”
Cooking Off held its sixth annual event on Saturday at the Edwardsville Moose Lodge. Ten participants made enough peppers for 300 to receive his two-ounce sample to determine the winner. There were also silent auctions and raffles.
Four-time champion Josh Brown is back. What is the secret of his victory?
“Brisket and juice from brisket,” Brown said. “Put all the fat drips in there and add a smoky flavor.
“Chili is meat and beans,” he said. “I will not leave it.”
Braun lived across the street from Merkel and met Sam over the years. As such, the event has become an annual tradition for him and other friends.
Brown was abdicated this year by Jane and Brian Stanhouse. Other contestants include Brian Curry, Kevin Sanderson, Chris Rosser, Christine and Nick Montero, Connie and Rick Johnson, Alexa Stevenson and Conor Bradley, Cameron Trecker and Jackie Hart, Sousa.・Davis was included.
All proceeds from Cookoff will be donated to the University of Washington School of Medicine for osteosarcoma research.
“When we donate money to Saitmann Cancer Center, it means a lot because they can do whatever they want in their lab,” said Dawn Merkel. It’s important, it’s very important to us that they at least come up with a better treatment.”
The Saitmann Cancer Center at the University of Washington referred Sam Merkel to a clinical trial of immunotherapy, giving him a chance to live a normal life. Thanks to his immunotherapy, he is able to attend college, eat the foods he likes without feeling nauseous, travel, and most importantly, spend more time with his friends and family. I made it.
Dawn and Bob Merkel said immunotherapy helped Sam stay alive after he ran out of treatment options. That includes Sam Merkel, just two months before his death, when he rode a pedal-for-cause 20-mile bike with his prosthetic leg after an eight-inch femur and two knee replacements. was included.
“It’s been great from the start,” said Dawn Merkel of the community support at Cookoff. .”
Proceeds from the cooking contest will be used for osteosarcoma research, while donations to the Kellsie’s Hope Foundation will be used for nursing scholarships, research and gifts to children battling cancer.
For more information on donations and events, please visit Kellsie’s Hope Foundation. website.
