ITHACA, NY — Wine and Dine 2025 was a great success!

For 13 hours Dave Ashton, Jen Mattison and Friends of Lite Rock 97.3 hosted the Wine & Dine Radiothon live, and they auctioned a different restaurant and wine or beer pairing every hour to listeners with the highest bid. All the proceeds went directly to the United Way of Tompkins County. Each restaurant donated a $200 gift certificate, and each winery donated a case of wine or craft beer. This year’s event finished with an amount raised of, $13,000, and a total amount raised of over $140,000 dollars since the start of the Radiothon twelve years ago!

Raising money for United Way of Tompkins County was only part of this event. Throughout the

Wine & Dine Radiothon we were able to give local leaders the ability to talk about the efforts of the United Way and their funded partners. The ability to raise awareness to the individual and businesses is equally important.

 

Ashton Teribury Relations Manager for United Way of Tompkins County, shared, “I am constantly amazed by the generosity of our community. A huge thank you to Cayuga Radio Group for hosting Wine and Dine for the past 12 years! We also greatly appreciate the restaurants, wineries, cideries, and breweries who created fantastic packages and generously donated their services and products. A big thank you as well to everyone who placed bids and purchased song dedications. Your support today is helping to shape many brighter tomorrows!”

I’m continually overwhelmed (and humbled) by the incredible support from our listeners, and once again, they truly stepped up this year. A huge thank you to EVERYONE who helped make ‘Wine and Dine 2025’ a massive success!” said Dave Ashton from Lite Rock 97.3.

 

“I’m incredibly proud of Dave, Jen, and our whole team. We’re lucky to have such amazing listeners who champion local causes, as well as business partners who continually go above and beyond, leading by example in our community. We’re honored to support the local United Way, who are excellent stewards of these generous contributions, ensuring they make a real difference for those in need.” said Chet Osadchey, President and General Manager.

 

This year’s Wine and Dine Radiothon had the following pairings: Idol Ridge & Dashers,  10/10 BBQ & Six Mile Creek,  South Hil Cider & Dolce Delight, Wagner Vineyards & Inn at Taughannock, Wagner Valley Brewing & Gola, Ithaca Beer & Ithaca Beer Taproom, Lakwood Vineyards & Souvlaki House, Buttonwood Grove Winery & Simeon’s Bistro, Summerhill Brewing & Texas Roadhouse, Treleaven Wines & The Boatyard Grill, Hosmer Winery & Ciao, Montezuma & Northstar Public House, Hazlitt & Tavern on the Commons.