Flagler family sweeps top honors in contest

Proving that families who bake together win together, the Johnston family of Flagler County took top honors over the weekend at the Republican Club BBQ and Blue Ribbon Cake & Pie Contest on Saturday.

Flagler County Tax Collector Suzanne Johnston, known for her finesse in the kitchen, took top honors in the Blue Ribbon Cake division with her “Chocolate Raspberry Mousse Cake”, wowing the celebrity judges panel made up of individuals from Jacksonville, Orlando, Palm Coast and St. Augustine.

“The love of cooking is one of the best things a woman can pass on to their children and grandchildren,” said Suzanne Johnston. “I am thrilled that my granddaughter Sydney won a medal. She loves to cook and can outcook most women. My daughter Suzie can whip up a pie, with homemade crust at a moment’s notice. I am a proud mama.”

Taking first place in the Blue Ribbon Pie division was Johnston’s daughter Suzie with her from scratch “Quintessential Apple Pie”. Johnston took home second place at the Jacksonville Fair in the fall of 2016 and has passed on her love of baking to her eight-year-old daughter Sydney, who won first place in the junior division on Saturday with her “Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie”.

The BBQ was the official kick off the 2018 election season in Florida, and Republican Party of Florida Chairman, Representative Blaise Ingoglia was on hand to do the honors.

Ingoglia cut the ribbon at the Princess Place Preserve for the first-of-its-kind event, hosted by the Flagler County Republican Club.  He joined more than two hundred Republicans who attended the kickoff; including Florida Senators Jack Latvala and Travis Hutson, State Representative Paul Renner, alongside a number of other elected officials and declared candidates.

“More bringing folks together and kind of breaking bread and taking a step back from all the chaos that’s going on and trying to just bond with one another, that’s what today’s about,” said Hutson. “Here it’s more organic conversation about family.”

Created to bring Republicans from across the state together while raising funds for the inaugural Flagler County Republican Club Youth Scholarship, the organization was proud to announce that Florida State Senator Travis Hutson and State Representative Paul Renner had sponsored the 2017-18 scholarships which will be administered through the Flagler County Education Foundation and awarded in May 2018.

“We are incredibly proud of our volunteers who stepped up to make election season kick off such a success,” said Flagler County Republican Club president Danielle Anderson. “The most amazing part of the day was hearing what a unique event it was, from showcasing Princess Place to the election season ribbon cutting put on for us by HT Productions to the cooking contest. It really gave visitors from across the state a wonderful sample of all that Flagler County has to offer.”