Born in California, Kristen grew up all over the United States due to her Dad being in the Navy. However, she has southern roots as her family is from Tennessee and has lived in the Charleston area for over 20 years. While Kristen did not grow up with the “Barbecue bug,” barbecue is now a way of life for her. She married Russ Cornette in 1997 and soon realized his passion for it. After many back-yard pig-pickin’s, Russ and his partner, Matt Gamble entered their first bbq competition in 2001. Kristen soon learned how much time and dedication it takes as their competition schedule grew year after and year, and jumped in to support and help them behind the scenes. Kristen’s favorite part of the bbq competition scene is the wonderful people she has met and the great friendships that have been born.
In 2002, Kristen and Russ welcomed their first child, Cole, and eventually the team name changed from Bayou Barbecue to Smokin’ Cole’s. In 2006 Kristen and Russ began bottling one of their sauces, Smokin’ Cole’s Original BBQ Sauce and a small business was born. The eventually marketed Smokin’ Cole’s Original BBQ Dry Rub as well, and many competition teams across the state (and a few from across the U.S.) use their products with their bbq. Unfortunately, due to hard economic times, Kristen and Russ are looking to sell the business in 2010.
Kristen and Russ now have 2 sons, Cole and Graydon (welcomed in 2005), and they keep Kristen on the run! She enjoys being able to spend most of her time with them. She also works part time for Sculpture in the South, a local non-profit organization in Summerville. As well as raising her sons and working part time, Kristen devotes a lot of time to community service as a member of the Summerville Junior Service League. With both Sculpture in the South, and the Junior Service League, she has managed to incorporate bbq into those worlds as well. Sculpture in the South has an annual Show and Sale and the concessions are provided by Smokin’ Cole’s. Similarly, the Junior Service League’s biggest fundraiser of the year is a golf tournament, and once again she utilizes Russ’ cooking talents to provide food for both the Friday night kick-off party and the lunch on Saturday.
Kristen is not the accomplished bbq’er that Russ is, but has found a bit of a niche with helping behind the scenes for the Carolina Pit Masters Barbecue Cooking School. As with the Junior Service League, she gains a lot of satisfaction knowing that the hard work is helping benefit a worthy cause, in the case of the Carolina Pit Masters Barbecue Cooking School, the Shrine Club. She hopes that her role with the cooking school will continue, and grow!
