GREEN BAY (NBC 26) — Several Green Bay area bars and restaurants participated in Green Bay's Best Bloody contest to raise money for the Great Lakes Hemophilia Foundation (GLHF).
Green Bay bartenders showcased their signature bloody mary recipes while guests enjoyed beer chasers, appetizers and voted for their favorite bloody mary.
GLHF Executive Director, Danielle Leitner Baxter said "the money raised today will support programs like our week-long residential camp, we have an educational conference that we do every year, we have scholarships and we also have emergency patient financial assistance."
The Best Bloody event is a great fit between the organization and a classic drink in the region.
"Wisconsin is just a bloody mary state. Milwaukee and Green Bay are bloody mary towns so we love our bloody marys'. So it was just a perfect way to do this event for the bleeding disorders community," said Leiner Baxter.
Bloody Mary lovers from around the region came to taste the offerings from eight different bar and restaurant participants.
"I travel the whole state of Wisconsin going to bloody mary events, bars, restaurants, breweries, distilleries, anything that's in a bloody mary," said Mary Jane Sanchez, judge of the Best Bloody contest.
Sanchez says that what makes bloody mary's in Wisconsin so special is that almost all of the unique toppings are locally sourced.
Some of the most popular toppings seen were meats, cheeses and pickles.
Best Bloody's is an event that brings GLHF's mission to life, to educate, support and advocate for the bleeding disorders community of Wisconsin.
Hemophilia and von Willebrand disease are rare bleeding disorders that impact more than 3,600 Wisconsin families including approximately 400 families in the Green Bay area.
They face many psychosocial, financial, and physical challenges.
If you would like to donate to GLHF and help with their mission to support those with bleeding disorders, go to glhf.org/donate.
