CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- For the 86th year, those hungry for barbecue and politicians looking for last minute hands to shake, made their way to the Mallard Creek Presbyterian Church.
The church's annual barbecue event was expecting as many as 20,000 people this year.
It is something that Barbara Owen waits all year to come back to.
"We've been here for many years, and it is getting better and better. And the people are better, too," she said smiling.
The first barbecue was held 86 years ago at the height of the Great Depression.
Construction had just ended on the first church and the workers needed to be paid.
That first event has grown over the years to where volunteers now cook up some 14,500 pounds of pork barbecue and 2,500 gallons of Brunswick stew.
The annual barbecue is a must-stop for politicians hoping to meet potential voters with the November election just around the corner.
The two candidates for mayor in Charlotte, Jennifer Roberts and Edwin Peacock, both greeted voters, as did Buck Newton, who is running for state Attorney General
"You don't get to meet voters on a one-on-one level Iike this, and it is for a good cause," Newton said.
To keep the politicians from overrunning the barbecue, they are required to stay in a roped-off area and let people come to them if they want.
Many like Mike McCay say they care more about the "cue."
"I've had barbecue all over the Southeast, and North Carolina just has its own special kind of barbecue," he said.
