Special Equestrians' 17th annual culinary extravaganza, Taste of Love will be held Sunday, June 28, 2020. Due to COVID-19 concerns, the event will be held virtually online. Bidding on the silent auction will begin on June 21st. The program and live auction will be held from 6:30 to 7:30 pm on June 28th. Login can begin as early as 6:00 pm. Ticket holders will have the opportunity to pick up food and wine at The Ranch Concert Hall & Saloon, 2158 Colonial Boulevard in Fort Myers, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm prior to the event so they can enjoy while watching the broadcast from home. Ticket holders and non-ticket holders are welcome to bid by visiting www.tol2020.givesmart.com for the silent auction and www.Event.gives/tol2020/live for the program and live auction. The event theme is "Taste of Love Makes the Merry Go Around" and will feature dishes from popular area restaurants, wine, live and silent auctions. Celebrity auctioneer Jay Severson and award-winning radio and television personality Gina Birch will oversee the evening's events. Over 400 guests attended the event in 2019, raising more than $150,000 for the local nonprofit organization. All proceeds from Taste of Love will benefit Special Equestrians, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping children and adults with disabilities by providing a structured therapeutic horseback riding and carriage driving program and other equine assisted activities. Special Equestrians has been awarded Premier Accredited Center status by PATH Intl. (Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship). Serving Lee, Charlotte, Hendry and Glades counties, Special Equestrians is a United Way Partner Agency that has been serving southwest Florida for more than 30 years. Event Sponsors to date include: Karon Rathgeber - Wells Fargo Advisors, Garden Street Iron & Metal, John S. Fifer, M.D., Seminole Casino, Mark Loren Designs and Frey Valet. Platinum Sponsors: Architectural Metals of SW Florida, Everglades Farm Equipment, Henderson Franklin, Lovelace Farms, MVP Realty/Lee and Marie Kitsberg, Sarlo Mowers, The Dorcey Law Firm, The LaPorta Family, UBS Maurillo Rhoades Group, Sweet Cypress Ranch, and Waterside Aesthetic Dentistry. Gold Sponsors: Club Care, C-2-C Landscaping and Riverdale Dental Associates/Gateway Dental Suites Silver Sponsor: Cummings Law Bronze Sponsors: Bechtol Chiropractic & Wellness Center, Dave & Cheryl Copham, Edison National Bank, Green Schoenfeld & Kyle, LLP, Hair by Chris, ISEC Incorporated, Jason’s Deli, Lawhon’s Grocery, Lee Dental Care, Moon Plumbing, Northern Contracting, Pulte Group, Target Roofing, Taylor Carpet One, Toll Law, Vein Specialists – Dr. Magnant. Media Sponsors include The News-Press, Florida Country Magazine, Florida Weekly, Palm Printing and Signs Now. Restaurants who are bronze sponsors include: Cantina Laredo, European/American Bakery Café, Mastello and A Touch of Italy, and Fancy’s Southern Café For more information call Freda Jones at (239) 565-3792 or flj@rbsc.net or Jan Fifer at (239) 851-7070 or jtfifer@gmail.com.