YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Oh Wow! The Roger & Gloria Jones Children’s Center for Science & Technology’s most popular fundraiser is not only getting a rebranding but the event itself is getting a refresh as it takes advantage of its expanded space, its executive director and board chairwoman said.
Science of Brewing, which Oh Wow has hosted since 2012, this year will be known as Oh Wow! On Tap and will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. Aug. 8 at the downtown Youngstown science center. The event will use the newly opened second floor in addition to the ground floor and basement space.
“When an event goes on for so many years,” I think just a refresh is not a bad consideration,” said Katie Seminara-DeToro, executive director of Oh Wow.
“We’ve been doing the event for a long time, and we felt with the new executive director and the addition of another floor that it made sense to just to refresh the event and do something different,” said Ellie Platt, chairwoman of Oh Wow’s board of directors.
Part of the intent behind the rebrand was to have a name that reflects that the event offers more than beer.
“We’ve had wine for the past number of years, but this year we’re adding in a bourbon tasting,” Seminara-DeToro said. There also will be a special tequila drink available, and title sponsors David and Caroline Jones will have a signature cocktail that they are working on with Oh Wow to prepare for the evening.
“We’ve focused on breweries since we started the event, but we really want to feature a lot of the other people doing wine and spirits,” Platt said. “So we just thought we’d expand it – do a refresh and expand.”
In addition to traditional brewers such as Penguin City and Modern Methods, On Tap will feature selections from Nova Destinations and Belle of the Barrel. Food vendors will include The Federal and West 34.
“We will focus on supporting our neighbors but are excited to welcome some new food as well,” Seminara-DeToro said.
The expansion of the event to Oh Wow’s newly opened second floor, where the America Makes 3D Printing Lab, Technology Hub and A-Maze-D temporary exhibit are stationed, provided an opportunity to do something different, she said. This year, each of the levels will have a specific beverage theme.
The lower level will be the Wine Cellar, while the ground floor will be the Beer Garden. The second floor will be the Speakeasy, which will be accessible only by navigating the maze.
“You know, you just can’t go into a speakeasy. There has to be some kind of secret passage,” though it “won’t be as easy” as just walking through the maze, she said. There also might be some “additional challenges” along the path.
“We’re excited about that,” Platt said. “With the additional space, we’re able to really feature some different facets of the beer and wine community.”
One of the goals is to grow the audience for the event. Science of Brewing traditionally had about 250 attendees, but with the rebranding and expansion to a third level, Seminara-DeToro said they are hoping to get 350 to 400 attendees.
“There’s a lot of community events, so we felt like having something different would draw not just a bigger crowd, but also a different crowd,” Platt said.
Another objective will be to get back to the event’s original intent, “to make adults play while they were here,” Seminara-DeToro said.
“What we want to do is just bring back the fun to Oh Wow, and also encourage adults to have a good time and not feel like they’re not allowed to play,” she said. “Continued curiosity, even into adulthood, is what sparks imagination, personal growth and continued education, which is not only what we want to see for the young explorers, but for explorers of every age.”
In addition, to get attendees to move through the various spaces, there will be demonstrations on each floor at specific times. “At one point in the evening, we might be mixing liquid nitrogen with wine to see what happens exactly. You know what happens?” Seminara-DeToro said. “I don’t think anyone does at this point in time.”
Attendees also will be able to print favors in the 3D lab and will get to explore the new Imagination Playground exhibit, which will be installed in early June. The exhibit will feature large foam construction blocks and other shapes, as well as tabletop dinosaur bones and a car set.
Admission for the event will be $75, but tickets are being sold online for $65 through May 31. Those ticket buyers also will be entered into a drawing for an overnight stay at the DoubleTree by Hilton Youngstown Downtown the night of the event and a voucher for brunch at Casa di Canzonetta.
“We would really like to see the audience grow a little bit this year, and we’re hopeful that offering the pre-sale at the reduced ticket price will help out,” Seminara-DeToro said.
Oh Wow also is working with groups, including Mahoning Valley Young Professionals and Ladies’ Beer Club Youngstown, to boost attendance. “The whole point is to really cultivate the next generation of supporters of Oh Wow and, hopefully, those people who will eventually have families of their own and bring the kids here too,” Seminara-DeToro said.
Pictured at top: Katie Seminara-DeToro, executive director of Oh Wow! The Roger & Gloria Jones Children’s Center for Science & Technology.