The summer kickoff edition of the Original Gainesville Food Truck Rally is Saturday.
The free event will begin at 5 p.m. at the High Dive, located at 210 SW Second Ave. The event will continue until 2 a.m. with live music starting at 7:30 p.m.
The rally, brought to you by Glory Days, High Dive and its newest host, Off the Griddle food truck, will benefit the Peaceful Paths local domestic-abuse network.
“This is our summer kickoff for the Original Gainesville Food Truck Rally; we only do this every six weeks or so,” said Pat Lavery, the founder and organizer of the event.
In January 2013, the Food Truck Rally, held at High Dive, was the first-ever event of its kind in Alachua County. Now, it remains the biggest, Lavery said.
“We had no idea how well it would resonate. Our parking lot was full within the first 30 minutes,” Lavery said. “We realized right off the bat we had something good on our hands.”
The event will feature affordable, delicious food from unique local and regional vendors complete with vegan and vegetarian options. There will be a fully stocked bar as well as nonalcoholic drinks available.
Attendees are encouraged to bring their friends, family and even pets, Lavery said.
Guests will be able to vote for their favorite food trucks by putting money in the donation boxes located in each truck. The winning truck will receive a prize and all the money goes to Peaceful Paths, Lavery said.
Peaceful Paths helps children and adults who are victims of domestic violence, said Peaceful Paths’ Executive Director Theresa Beachy.
Donations from this event will help Peaceful Paths fund the expansion of its current campus.
Beachy said Peaceful Paths has devoted the past four years to being able to provide the residential services people really need. They officially broke ground on the project in March 2014.
“Providing safe residential services is the key to long-term impact,” Beachy said.
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 6/4/15]
