Ragin' Cajun owner continues parents' legacy of helping storm victims

As the North Carolina State Fair winds down, work is just beginning for one booth owner.

Posted 10:40 p.m. Oct 22, 2017 — Updated 10:40 p.m. Oct 22, 2017

RALEIGH, N.C. — As the North Carolina State Fair winds down, work is just beginning for one booth owner.

Anybody who has passed the Ragin’ Cajun booth at the State Fair has likely seen a crowd. The vendor serves everything from fried shrimp to alligator, but what is not so obvious is what they do to give back.

Owner Chris Wrenn runs the booth and also operates Old North State Catering in Fuquay-Varina. For the past several years, he and his crew have partnered with Mission Serve, a Christian nonprofit working to rebuild and remodel homes for those in need.

“It’s a great trip. A lot of churches from around the United States travel in from different locations,” Wrenn said.

This past summer, the group went to Columbus County, where residents are still picking up the pieces from Hurricane Matthew. Wrenn and his crew cooked meals and served food to the hundreds of volunteers with the mission.

“We feed them breakfast and send out a boxed lunch and a good hot dinner. We’ve been doing that for the last six years or so,” Wrenn said.

When Hurricane Irma hit Florida last month, Wrenn and his team went to Fort Myers and served about 30,000 meals over a two week period to lineman who worked tirelessly to restore power to the state.

“That was pretty rewarding,” Wrenn said.

Wrenn’s desire to give back all started with his parents. His mother, who taught him how to cook, and father started a disaster relief foundation after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. They cooked meals for storm victims in New Orleans and continued their disaster-related work for years to come.

Now, Wrenn has picked up where they left off, determined to continue their work.

“I think most folks are still led by their heart and I think as long as that happens, we’ll all be in really good shape,” he said.

Wrenn said his next mission will be to Puerto Rico. He is working to team up with a church there to figure out the best way to bring his services to residents in need.

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