When the second annual Onset Beach Jazz Festival was canceled last summer after fundraising fell short, organizer Mikelyn Roderick was beyond disappointed.

"We just could not get the money together," Roderick said November 4 as she sipped coffee at the Pier View Restaurant on Onset Avenue, where she often performs with local jazz acts.

The festival co-founder and a vocalist herself, Roderick said the event will go on next year, however.

"I have that determined nature," she said. "We are having the festival."

To ensure that the event can go off without a hitch next summer, fundraising has already begun.

The "Chicken and Waffles Old School R&B" fundraiser is scheduled for Saturday, November 19, at 7 p.m. at the Dudley L. Brown VFW in Onset.

Roderick said she hopes the food - and perhaps the curiosity of eating fried chicken and waffles in the same sitting - will attract many and drum up much-needed support for the festival.

The event will feature R&B from the '60s, '70s, and '80s, and the atmosphere will be comfortable.

"It's almost like having a house party," Roderick said, likening the event to the "rent parties" musicians used to throw years ago to bring in enough money to pay their rent. Tickets cost $15 at the door. Food can also be taken to-go.

The fundraising effort is even happening miles and miles away. Roderick's former college roommate and her husband will be throwing a party in Philadelphia, Penn. to raise money for the Onset Beach Jazz Festival. Roderick's friend had attended the first festival in July 2010 and felt compelled to help with the effort to bring jazz to Onset.

Attracting people to Onset is what Roderick had hoped to accomplish with the festival when she founded it with friend and fellow artist Daniel "Buddy" Monteiro in 2010.

"Onset is a hidden jewel," said Roderick, who grew up in town and recently moved back from California. "I thought, 'What a beautiful setting for a jazz festival.'"

In addition to contributing to the arts scene - and, she hopes, tourism - Roderick uses the event to support music education in Wareham Middle School through "MIMSS," which stands for "Musical Instruments for Middle School Students."

"The festival is kind of the dessert," Roderick explained. "The real project is the music education."

Band is currently not offered in Wareham Middle School, though it is offered in the elementary schools and at the high school. Roderick said she wants to make sure that middle school students who would like to play an instrument have the opportunity to do so. Part of what she raises for the jazz festival will go toward that effort.

Students designed the logo and are involved in the event.

"We will always have a high school band open the festival," Roderick said. Students from the Old Rochester Regional High School performed at the first festival.

Organizers - Roderick and the Onset Beach Jazz Festival committee - are looking to raise $10,000 for next year's event. The cost covers payments for the performers, various permits, insurance, and necessary police details, among other things. The event is free to attend.

"We're not looking to have [jazz artist] Jean-Luc Ponty yet, but we can get there!" Roderick said. In encouraging people to donate and attend the Chicken & Waffle fundraiser and upcoming events, she stressed: "You're supporting the festival and you're supporting the kids."

Donations can also be made by mail. Checks can be made out to "Onset Beach Jazz Festival" and sent to P.O. Box 787, East Wareham, MA 02538.