MARQUETTE -- Every year, Northern Michigan University Culinary School students put on a Chili Challenge, but this year's event is a little more meaningful.
This year's Chili Challenge is in honor of Becky Blackburn, an NMU culinary student who died in a car accident last year.
The Marquette Food Co-op helped contestants pay for ingredients Friday. They gave $20 gift cards to the amateur contestants who shopped there.
All chili ingredients had pictures of Becky near them to remember her.
"We really wanted to sponsor something with Becky's name on it," said culinary student Scott Bousson. "She was a big part of the school and our program, and just everyone in the program's pretty close. She's a part of us really, so we thought we wanted to do something in her honor."
Anyone can participate in the Chili Challenge. If you'd like to enter your chili in the event, bring four gallons of your recipe to the Jacobetti Center on Tuesday at 3 p.m.
If you'd like to taste the different chili, tickets are five dollars for the general public and three dollars for NMU students.
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