Take 140 volunteers – including scores of students from St. James School and Red Bank Catholic High School – mix well with 1,800 or so patrons, stir in samples of cuisine from 33 of Red Bank’s top restaurants, season with shuttle buses between the downtown and Galleria districts, sprinkle with music and dance and you have the perfect recipe for “A Taste of Red Bank 9.20.09.”

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The fundraiser which benefited Saint James School unfolded seamlessly under bright blue skies Sept. 20, enabling folks to savor self-guided tours of this top-of-the-line food fest said Lisa Mayer.

Mayer, a member of the committee of 12 parents and friends of St. James School who teamed with the Red Bank Restaurant Association and Red Bank RiverCenter to coordinate the first time event, called it the most successful fundraiser in the 130-year-history of the school.

While the food, as expected, drew kudos, the raves were reserved for the student volunteers who greeted the throngs who lined up for the amazing array of savory treats that ran the geographic gamut from down home to continental to Asian delight and all points in between.

“We have gotten incredible comments about the kids, how personable they were, what great representatives of the school they are, how well mannered and wonderful they looked in their uniforms,” said Mayer.

She added that the proceeds will benefit the development program at St. James. “The funds from the development program benefit everything from the science clubs and after school programs to Word Master’s Challenge and vocabulary funds to the law adventure, poetry, literature, geography and science clubs, to name but a few.

 The development program has also helped to fund a new boiler and the installation of new windows, she said.

Many of the students helping people throughout the day said they were enjoying their role as young ambassadors for the school. They liked the idea of helping to raise money for St. James.

“We wanted to work the benefit because we want to help the school,” said Caitlin Mucerino, 12, a seventh grade St. James Student who stood with Ryan Babnew, 13, eighth grade and Kathryn Farrell, a freshman at Red Bank Catholic High School, checking off “passports” outside one of the restaurants.

Hannah Mayer, 12, seventh grade, called the event a “fun, family day.” She hoped the benefit would “go very well” and said she enjoys raising money for the school and other worthy community affairs. “I love doing things for the community.”

And it seemed that the community returned those sentiments.

Typical of the comments from folks who enjoyed the event were those from dance teacher Kathryn Barnett, who stood with a group of students waiting in a long line for a taste of pasta at one of the many Italian restaurants in town.

“Yumo” was Barnett’s word for “Taste of Red Bank.”

“We’re here to support the community,” she said. “It couldn’t be a more perfect way to do that than being here with friends, sampling the cuisine of Red Bank.”