Local Red Cross chapter to honor World Central Kitchen

Courtesy of the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross of the Central Coast will recognize World Central Kitchen as its 2018 Disaster Response Partner at the local chapter’s Farm to Table Dinner on Sunday, June 2.

Taking place from 2:30 to 7 p.m. at Carmel Valley Ranch, the dinner is an opportunity for local residents to also celebrate the mission and impact of the Red Cross while enjoying the finest offerings from local farms and wineries in a beautiful outdoor setting.

Presented by Audi of America and Third Millennium Partners, this year’s dinner has a theme of “Heroes Feeding Heroes,” making World Central Kitchen the perfect honoree, says Michele Averill, CEO of the local Red Cross chapter.

Based in Washington D.C., World Central Kitchen served approximately 350,000 meals last year to victims of the Camp, Carr, and Mendocino Complex Fires in Northern California, and the Woolsey Fire and Montecito mudslides in Southern California. The nonprofit organization also provided essential feeding support to the first responders and volunteers who were deployed to those disasters.

“What World Central Kitchen stepped forward to do in partnership with us last year was truly impressive,” she adds. “We are absolutely thrilled to be honoring them at our Farm to Table dinner.”

“Partnering with organizations like the Red Cross is core to World Central Kitchen’s mission to feed and empower communities during times of disaster,” says World Central Kitchen Executive Director Nate Mook. “We are honored to be recognized by the Central Coast Chapter for our work in California.”

The annual Farm to Table festivities will kick off with a tasting reception featuring area wineries, breweries, and distilleries. The Brian Fitzgerald Trio will also be on hand during the reception, performing a number of the local group’s popular jazz standards.

Chef Tim Wood of Carmel Valley Ranch; Chef Fabrice Roux of ROUX and Chophouse; and Chef Soerke Peters of Etats-Unis and Mezzaluna, will then prepare and serve a unique, multi-course, family-style dinner complete with expertly selected wine pairings. Jennifer Roux, also of ROUX and Chophouse, is serving as Event Chair for this year’s dinner.

This year’s Farm to Table dinner will once again culminate in an exciting live auction that benefits the programs and emergency services that the Red Cross provides in Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties. “In addition to thanking key partners, our dedicated volunteers, and our generous financial donors, this dinner is a vitally important fundraising event for our chapter and the residents of this area we serve,” Averill says.

Tickets for this year’s dinner can be purchased online at redcross.org/FarmtoTable or by calling 831-626-5255.

In addition to being presented by Audi of America and Third Millennium Partners, this year’s dinner has also been generously supported by Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System (Gold Sponsor); Capital Insurance Group (Silver Sponsor); and Montage Health, the Fenton & Keller law firm, and Taylor Farms California (Bronze Sponsors). Other sponsors include the Pebble Beach Company and Straight-and-Level Aviation.

Capital Insurance Group will also be celebrated at the event for a second $35,000 gift the company made toward the recent purchase of a new chapter-based Emergency Response Vehicle.