SummerTini

I know, there are a bunch of fundraisers every week in this town, but this is one I really want to highlight. For the fourth year in a row, members of San Francisco's food community have joined forces to organize ~SUMMERTINI~, a benefit for the CHEFS (Conquering Homelessness through Employment in Food Service) program of Episcopal Community Services (ECS). SummerTini features live and silent auctions, live music, comedy, signature martinis and alcohol-free infusions, and appetizers from Millennium, E&O Trading Company, Lettus Organic Cafe, Poleng Lounge, Hayes Street Grill Bar & Grill, Kuleto's, Lark Creek Steak, Roots, Baker's Dozen, Garibaldi's, Sukhi Indian Cuisine, and Ducca.

As I mentioned in my intro this week, the CHEFS culinary training program places homeless adults in positions within the food industry. Hundreds of CHEFS graduates work in restaurants, hotels, and nursing homes. Today more than 85 percent of CHEFS graduates acquire jobs, which is a tremendous rate given the complex challenges associated with chronic homelessness that many face.

SummerTini helps raise funds that are truly needed for the CHEFS program to operate successfully. There’s a downright impressive live auction, including a week in Provence in a private home for eight; New Orleans for two and Tahoe for 20; a restaurant review dinner out with Michael Bauer; and a Vespa! The silent auction includes weekend stays at top hotels, dinner certificates to restaurants like Boulevard and others, tickets to the theater and sporting events, two flights on Southwest anywhere… a ton of things to bid on. There is also Sponsor-A-Chef: for $50 you can purchase a uniform, $100 buys textbooks, $700 buys all the ingredients needed for class, $1,200 covers a CHEF's monthly stipend, and for $2000, you can provide everything an aspiring student needs to complete the CHEFS program.

Why don’t you consider making next Friday’s happy hour one that does a lot of good?

SummerTini
Fri., June 13th, 2008

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
701 Mission St.
Cross: 3rd St.
San Francisco, CA
415-487-3736

website

6pm–9pm

tickets: $85
purchase tickets online or call 415-487-3736