Six hundred eighty-three people took part in a simultaneous string-cheese-stringing attempt on Saturday, setting a world record for the most people stringing cheese simultaneously. The attempt took place during the weekend marking the 25th year of the Feast of Little Italy, a free, three-day festival that wrapped up Sunday in Jupiter.
A Quarter-Century of Pasta, Pizza and Zeppole
The cheese-stringing record was reported by WPBF, which also noted that the event ran Friday through Sunday, with Sunday hours stretching from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Jupiter Magazine listed pasta, pizza, sausage and peppers, zeppole, cannoli and gelato among the festival foods. The free admission extended across all three days of the celebration, the outlet reported.
Beyond the food tents, organizers packed in Galbani cooking demonstrations, wine seminars and a kids' zone, per the same WPBF account. WPBF anchor Felicia Rodriguez emceed some of the festivities and assisted Chef Marco Sciortino in preparing four dishes over the weekend, the station reported.
The Record Attempt and the Faces Behind It
Festivalgoers took part in the simultaneous cheese-stringing attempt Saturday, an activity organizers built into the schedule as a highlight of the anniversary weekend. The 683-person tally landed the Feast a spot in the record books for its specific category of mass participation, distinct from other cheese-stretching feats recorded elsewhere. In Wisconsin, for instance, Weyauwega's Star Dairy set a world record in 2006 with a single 2,000-foot piece of string cheese, an effort documented by FOX 11. That same dairy later unofficially topped itself with a 3,832-foot strand.
Music carried the festival through its evenings, with Frank Stallone and The Paul Vesco Band headlining Saturday's entertainment, Jupiter Magazine reported. The festival traces back to an idea from second-generation Italian Americans Jerry Somma and Bill Fagnano, who conceived the event over coffee, according to the magazine's account.
A Toy Drive Rooted in the Festival's History
The Feast of Little Italy got its start in 2001 on a smaller scale at CityPlace in West Palm Beach before growing into the Abacoa celebration it is today, according to the Abacoa Property Owners Association. For more than 17 years, the festival has also served as the launch point for the Little Smiles Holiday Toy Drive, the association says, with attendees encouraged to bring a new, unwrapped toy to help kick off this year's collection. Organizers report that the toy drive has generated nearly $1 million in support over the years and delivered more than 400,000 toys to children throughout the local community.
Last year's edition of the festival ran Nov. 7-9 in Abacoa, also with free admission and free parking, in what was then its 24th year in Palm Beach County, according to Florida Weekly. This year's silver-anniversary edition leaned into both its culinary roots and its charitable tradition, giving Jupiter-area families one more reason to stretch some cheese for a good cause.
