Amidst the dreary days of the tail end of winter, a ray of sunshine … or rather a stream of chocolate … emits from the east side of Paulding County. The Oakwood Library Association hosted its 14th Annual Chocolate Extravaganza this past week on Tuesday, March 12 and Thursday March 14. The evenings sold out with 88 guests each night. Supporters from across the county converged at the library decked out in their cool cat roaring 20s threads to enhance The Great Gatsby theme for this year’s gala. This is an annual fundraiser sponsored by the friends group of the Cooper Community Library.
Eight “courses” were served by wait staff of library and community volunteers. 28 trifles of confections were presented to the festive guests. There were feathers, pearls, and ragtime music along with flapper dresses, fringed hems, headbands and elbow gloves to round out this period of the evening. Men were in short supply, for the event but the ones in attendance wore sharp suits and hats to complement the ladies.
Chocolate trivia was sprinkled in between courses to enlighten chocolate connoisseurs. Did you know that white chocolate is actually not chocolate at all? Or the first solid chocolate was developed in the 1850s by a man named Joseph Fry? Before that, chocolate was enjoyed in liquid form only. As a party favor, this year each guest was presented with a mini cookbook of many of the sweet treats enjoyed at the Extravaganza. The pages were supplemented with small sayings about chocolate such as (my personal favorite) “Chocolate is nature’s way of making up for Mondays!”
Oakwood Library Association: Kudos to you for another fundraiser success and a phenomenal night away from reality to indulge in a fascinating era of clothing, accessories … and of course chocolate!
