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March 21, 2018
Dear Sister Dames,

THANK YOU ALL for a job well done! We celebrated our 11th biennial WIG on March 10 to a record crowd of over 200 attendees, students, Dame volunteers and speakers who enjoyed a day of dynamic workshops, demonstrations, panel discussions and presentations. We brought in over $1200 through our cookbook and culinary garage sales alone to help support our grants and scholarship program.

Pati Jinich was an inspiring keynote speaker.  She was a perfect choice to launch this all day celebration of women in food, beverage, and hospitality.  A big, big thanks to co-chairs Laurie BellEileen Dykes and CiCi Williamson who did an extraordinary job organizing, cajoling, persuading and following up to create a spectacular event.  

Special kudos to Marie Ostrosky, our exemplary cashier, who collected money all day long! Jill Collins and Lori Gardner pulled together an EXPO that was so much fun and offered a great way for everyone to gather and share their experiences over lunch.
 
We are so grateful to our administrator, Robin Kurtzman, who helps us in so many ways all year and was a crucial presence at WIG all day.   And thank you to all of you who were speakers, created programming, corralled vendors, helped during each session, called in favors on our behalf and were supportive to our committee chairs. Over a third of our members participated in some way. WIG's success is a real testament to Dames' power.

Our board nominations launch today. Please consider running for a leadership position. We need your talents to grow and improve.  So nominate yourself or Dames you believe can be active board members and advance our chapter's mission. The deadline is April 11. Details are below.
 
The new member applications are in. The committee is considering a really fine group of potential new Dames. We will announce the members after our April board meeting and invite them to join us at our Spring General Membership Meeting.
 
Speaking of our Spring GMM, please save the date of June 2 for a lunch meeting.  We will announce the place and price shortly.
 
The board appointed Janet Cam as second vice president, development to replace Bette Alberts who had to step down to spend more time to care for her mother and it appointed Katherine Newell Smith as recording secretary to replace Suzanne DeGalan  who resigned due to scheduling conflicts.
 
And, finally, our chapter has nominated Nora Pouillon for Grand Dame. More info is below.
 
Thank you for all you do to help achieve LDE-DC's mission.

Please feel free to contact me with any suggestions or concerns.

Tel: (301) 537-8822
 
Yours truly,
 
Janet Yu

President
Les Dames d'Escoffier International, Washington, D.C. Chapter

WOMEN IN GASTRONOMY SYMPOSIUM APPRECIATION


Pati Jinich, WIG Keynote Speaker, and LDE-DC President Janet Yu.

More pictures to come, please look for them in the Photo Gallery on the website next week. If you took photos, we'd love to review them.  Please send them to Robin Kurtzman at [email protected]

WIG Symposium Co-Chairs  Laurie Bell Eileen Dykes and 
CiCi Williamson: Thank you all for lending your valuable and considerable time, talents and resources all year  to make this 11th Women in Gastronomy such a great success for our chapter.

Volunteers chair Marie Steffany: Many, many thanks to the WIG day of volunteers!  Your dedication, flexibility and generous time commitments were critical to this year's success.  Your cooperation and assistance was greatly appreciated by every speaker, program chair, vendor and organizer.

Cookbook Jumble, chair Susan Delbert: Our Cookbook Jumble brought out the environmental recycler in hundreds of people.  Fifty cardboard boxes of cookbooks, magazine and food essays were donated by Dames, hoarders, food writers, closet culinarians and home chefs. Three of Susan Callahan's University of Maryland culinary students transported the lot from storage in Silver Spring to the symposium. From Marcus Samuelsson's relatively new "Red Rooster Cookbook" to Jacque Pepin's historic, but well-loved master technique books, the sections were wide-ranging.  International cookbooks, dessert books and celebrity tomes seemed to garner the most interest, but attendees were thrilled to scoop up Harold McGee's exposition of food chemistry, "On Food" and the interestingly titled, "Why French Children Eat Everything."  Any cookbooks which remained unsold were donated to two worthy recipients: the culinary students at the University of Maryland and the Seed School of Maryland library in Baltimore, Maryland.

Culinary Garage Sale, chair, Katherine Newell Smith: First a big thank you to Karen Lippold who supplied  a huge assortment of baking and display items for our sale then worked to price all of our donated items in advance and presided over our sales table during the entire symposium. Her efforts were key to our success. Great appreciation also goes to Stacey Adams and Janet Cam for coming to my home to price my ping-pong table full of cooking gadgets and tabletop ware donated by many Dames and to Ann Stratte and Judy Rusignuolo who worked the table during the EXPO lunch. All unsold items are being donated to the Center for Children and Families.

Lunchtime Expo, Co-Chairs: Jill Collins and Lori Gardner
We had 20 great vendors at this year's EXPO including Susan Sorrenko (Moorenko's Ice Cream), Julia Rutland (Wüsthof), Gladys Abi-Najm (Lebanese Taverna) , Maria Kopsidas (Cookology), Susan Wallace, (SweetFreakz) , and our keynoter, Pati Jinich, who graciously took a table to sign her cookbook.

Our thanks to Janet Yu, without whom we never could have navigated the Montgomery County food inspection process, and to CiCi Williamson who jumped in at the last minute to secure some terrific exhibitors. We were delighted to have a variety of  locally-based specialty food manufacturers (Mama Biscuit's Gourmet Biscuits, Chouquette Chocolates, Dip-n-Dill, Caulfield Provisions, Neek & Nan's Fresh Seasonings, Oh-Mazing Granola, Red Bandana Bakery and Sweet Crimes Bakery) plus informational vendors (Culinary Historians of Washington DC, KASMO, Young Chefs), author Dianne Hennessey King and some wonderful restaurants - Rocklands BBQ, Choolaah Indian BBQ and Tsiona Foods. It was a delicious event.

Conference "Goody" Bags, Co-chairs:  Drew Faulkner and Carole Sugarman. A big thank you to our very generous  goody bag product donors:  Michele's Granola, Edible DC magazine, Tsiona Foods, Silver, Caulfield Provisions, Red Bandana Bakery, Dawson's Market, Montgomery County Food Council, Livity Foods, MeatCrafters, Virginia Egg Council, Wüsthof, Hollywood East Cafe, Fairytale Brownies, Swiss Bakery, Edee Hogan, Rosa Mendoza and Denis Colman, and Patron Tequila. We encourage you to patronize these terrific businesses.  And, a special thanks to all the goody bag packers: Rose Clifford, Odonna Mathews, Elizabeth Hopkinson, Ann Stratte, Laurie Bell, and Eileen Dykes. We appreciate your cheerful enthusiasm and willingness to stay until the bitter end!!!  
CALL FOR LDE-DC 2018-2019 BOARD NOMINATIONS!
 
The nomination period for LDE-DC chapter officers and directors for 2018-19 is now open until Monday, April 11.  You can find full descriptions of these jobs and the nomination form at www.lesdamesdc.org in the Member Resources Section and under the LDE-DE Board Minutes/Election Documents tab.  The login password is ldedc2014, all lower case.

Please nominate Dames who possess leadership qualities to represent our membership and who will work to achieve our chapter's goals in the coming year. Remember, you may nominate any chapter member in good standing or you may nominate yourself.  Please consider who will best serve the organization and submit your nomination(s) to committee chair Katherine Newell Smith at [email protected]. Please be sure that the Dame you nominate agrees to participate as an active member of the board.

Each Officer is elected for a one (1) year term and is eligible for re-election to a second consecutive term. Exception is the treasurer who may serve total of four (4) consecutive terms. Each term period follows the fiscal year. Directors are elected for two years. After two (2) consecutive terms, an Officer is ineligible for reelection to the same office for a period of one (1) year, but she may be nominated and elected to a different position as either an Officer or Director. No member may serve on the board, as an officer or director, for more than seven (7) consecutive years.

The LDE-DC BOD positions are: president, first vice president (membership), second vice president (education and community outreach), second vice president (development), recording secretary, communications (corresponding) secretary and finance. Database and web-savvy individuals are needed for the communications secretary and finance positions. In addition, two (2) director positions are open.

2018-19 Board Nominating Committee
Chair: Katherine Newell Smith. Committee members: Eileen Dykes, Drew Faulkner, Sara Ducey, Golnaz Feiz

GRAND DAME AWARD NOMINATION
 
Our chapter nominated Nora Pouillon for Grand Dame. LDEI annually bestows the honorific title of Grande Dame of Les Dames d'Escoffier International to a woman in recognition of her extraordinary and unusual contributions to the fields of food, wine, other fine beverages, nutrition, the arts of the table or other fields that relate to these disciplines. Non-members and members of our organization are eligible for this tribute. The nomination process begins at the chapter level. The LDEI deadline was March 15.  
CALL FOR GRANTS APPLICANTS
 
The grant application for 2018 is now online at http://www.lesdamesdc.org/grants.html. The deadline for entry is Saturday, March 31st, and we will notify awardees by April 25th.
We look forward to receiving applications from local organizations that match our chapter's mission to support women to succeed in the food, fine beverage, hospitality, and related industries. Tax-exempt charitable or educational organizations in region may apply.
If you have any questions, please contact Jessica Botta at (202) 329-8912 or by email at [email protected]  

MARIANNE ALI FIRST ANNUAL BRUNCH FOR DC CENTRAL KITCHEN GRADUATION

The first annual Marianne Ali Brunch that LDE-DC will sponsor takes place for the 111th graduating class at 10:00 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. on Friday, April 6 at DC Central Kitchen, 425 2nd Street, NW. We should plan on preparing at least 12 different dishes for 35 people for brunch. Click here for the link to SignUpGenius.  There is space to indicate any special serving equipment needs. The kitchen will provide all beverages, plates and utensils and serving pieces and equipment. Please deliver food by 9:30 a.m. which is also when street parking near the kitchen becomes available. Dames can leave the food at the DCCK entrance (the alley loading dock), and then leave to find a parking spot. The Kitchen will try to save a few spaces in the lot, but we shouldn't count on it.

The actual graduation is scheduled for 2 o'clock that afternoon in the Navy Memorial auditorium at 701 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC. We sincerely hope you can attend both events.

HURRAH! 

Amy Brandwein is a finalist for the James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef Mid Atlantic.

Pati Jinich was a guest on ABC7 WJLA "Let's Talk Live" on March 1, promoting Women in Gastronomy.    http://wjla.com/news/lets-talk/celebrating-food-with-pati-jinich as well as on WTOP News.  https://wtop.com/food-restaurant/2018/03/3-ingredients-go-a-long-way-in-weeknight-cooking/  Pati is also a finalist for the James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding TV Host for her PBS cooking show, Pati's Mexican Kitchen.

Paula Shoyer's recipe for chocolate quinoa cake from her new book The Healthy Jewish Kitchen was featured in Food52 as a Genius Recipe.

Nancy Hart's and husband Jerry Trice's Gunther & Co. was featured in Baltimore Magazine's  50 Best Restaurant 2017 and Nancy was profiled in its Meet the Makers, unsung restaurant heroes.  http://www.baltimoremagazine.com/2018/3/5/50-best-restaurants-in-baltimore. Also, Nancy and Jerry are active in No Kid Hungry and are hosting their annual fundraiser for Chefs Cycle on April 10th at their restaurant.  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2nd-annual-no-kid-hungry-chefs-cycle-fundraiser-at-gunther-co-tickets-41841363645. They will be riding 300 miles in Santa Rosa May 15-17.
PROGRAMS
 
SAVE THE DATE - DAMES ONLY
Lunch with Grand Dame Lydia Bastianich
DATE:  Wednesday, April 4
TIME: 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
PLACE: TBA
PRICE: TBA

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE: VIP Curator-led Tour of Foodways Exhibits with Dutch-treat brunch following at the Sweet Home Café  - SOLD OUT! 
DATE:  April 20, 2018
TIME:  8:45 a.m.
PLACE: National Museum of African American History and Culture, 1400 Constitution Ave NW, Washington, DC 20560
PRICE:  Dames  Members $10 (for tax deductible donation to the Les Dames Scholarship Fund), Non-Members: $15 (includes tax deductible donation to the Les Dames Scholarship Fund)
RSVP: Click here to add  your name to the waitlist
OF INTEREST
 
Monday, April 30, at 6:00 p.m. Dining With the Chefs fundraising dinner for the Campus Kitchens Project (CKP) at the Universities at Shady Grove, Building II, 9630 Gudelsky Dr, Rockville, MD 20850
The Universities at Shady Grove Hospitality and Tourism Management (HTM) students, instructed by Susan Callahan, mount this annual event to support the their CKP participation as they create nutritious meals for residents of The Dwelling Place of Gaithersburg, Maryland, lead workshops to teach basic
cooking skills, and advocate for hunger awareness in Montgomery County.  CKP is a program of DC Central Kitchen and is a national leader in community service for students devoted to hunger relief. If you purchase tickets, please indicate you are a Dame so we can arrange to save a Dames table.
Click here  for more information
https://diningwiththechefs3.wixsite.com/dwtc2018
For tickets, click on "attend" tab
LOG-IN INFORMATION

How to Log-in to ldei.org. Members only:
User ID: email address listed in LDEI database
Password:  If you have not logged in before, you will need to contact the LDEI office for your password, which you can change at any time.
[email protected] or 502-456-1851 x4
How to Log-in to the Les Dames DC Chapter website, www.lesdamesdc.org:
Password: ldedc2014 (for Members-only section)
LDE-DC Instagram               
  

Please add Instagram to your social media accounts http://instagram.com/lesdamesdc# @LesDamesDC

 

Editor's Note:  
 
ENTRE NEWS is published on the first and  third Wednesday of each month.  It is on hiatus during the month of August. Deadline for HURRAH! and other news is the second and fourth Thursday of each month. Please send a BRIEF paragraph with your professional and personal news that you would like your sister Dames to know about in HURRAH!

HURRAH! is not meant as an advertising opportunity for a cooking class or event, rather it offers a shout out to members for recent accomplishments and honors.   Please submit your HURRAH to [email protected] in a succinct 75 words of less.
 
OF INTEREST offers Dames a chance to let their sister chapter members know about events they are involved in that might be of interest to a majority of the membership.  Its function is not to promote products, cooking classes, culinary trips, etc., rather to alert members to public programs that might be of professional interest, especially if Dames are featured.   We request OF INTEREST entries to be no longer than 150 words. Less is always better.
 
JOB OPPS can open Dames networks to employment opportunities.
 
Send information to Entre News Editor Katherine Newell Smith [email protected]  
 
Thank you for you continued interest and participation.

Katherine Newell Smith
Founding Editor, Entre News  

In this Issue
 
Social Media Connections

 

Connect with Sister Dames

Like us on Facebook
LesDamesDC 

Follow us on Twitter
@LesDamesDC 
@LesDamesDC

We need ALL members who have FB, Twitter and Instagram accounts to follow and actively re-tweet our members' tweets to spread the great news about our activities and programs!
 
Connect with Les Dames d'Escoffier International

Please share news, events and updates.  Join the LDEI members-only LinkedIn Group to stay connected with other Dames.


Like us on Facebook   View our profile on LinkedIn
Join a Committee....
You were invited to join Dames because of your talents and achievements and you promised to be part of our chapter's committee work; so, now it is time to
Get Involved!

Our committees offer the perfect opportunity to get to know your sister Dames, share your skills and to give back to the community through service.  Every committee needs dedicated participants. Please contact the committee chairs and offer your time and skills, now.

 

Grants/Mentoring:

Jessica Botta 

[email protected]

 

Scholarships: 

Alison Ricketts

[email protected]

 

 Green Tables: 

Susan Lutz

[email protected]

 

 Programs:

Bonnie Benwick

[email protected]

 

Global Culinary Initiatives:

Amy Riolo

[email protected] 

 

Public Relations:

Summer Whitford

[email protected]

 

 Development:

Bette Alberts

[email protected]

 

Board Members

President
Katherine Newell Smith   
 
Financial Officer
Eileen Dykes   
 
Communications Officer
Kristen Hartke
 
Directors
Polly Wiedmaier (Social Media)
Summer Whitford (Public Relations)
Laurie Bell (Programs)
Alternate:  
Susan Lutz  (Green Tables)

Entre News Update:
Please submit your Entre News information in a brief, concise statement to Katherine Newell Smith at [email protected].
 
Board Meeting Minutes
To view the latest approved board meeting minutes, go to www.lesdamesdc.org and

click on the Members Only tab  and enter the password.  Click on  the dropdown menu for LDE-DC Board and  you will see a link to the board meeting minutes. During each monthly board meeting, the board approves the previous month's minutes and they are then posted to our website. 

Members-Only Section to our Website


It is easy to find chapter documents and resources, our event archives and past editions of Entre News.  

 

We now have a single password that all Dames must use to access the Members Only section of the website.  The password is ldedc2014.  Please do not share this password with anyone outside of the Chapter.

 

If you are having trouble logging into the website please contact our Communications Officer, Kristen Hartke, at [email protected]  

 

Once you log in under Members Only, you will see a revised menu where you can find:

  • past and current Entre News issues posted under the Entre News Archives tab.
  • archives of past chapter activities in the LDE-DC Dame Only Events menu along with upcoming events.
  • helpful files including chapter letterhead, name tag template, LDEI logos and tax-exempt certificates under Documents and Forms.
  • our chapter's standing rules, bylaws and membership roster under Bylaws, Roster & Minutes.  
  • A roster of Dames that can be printed out.
Quick Links
  

Member Milestones - Share your professional news with Dames in all Chapters in our LDEI Quarterly.   Shout, don't whisper, about your accomplishments. We all want a chance to say "Bravo!"

Submit your news to:
[email protected] - Edited by - Edited by Dorothy Koteski (Phil)
LDEI Quarterly Deadlines:
The deadline for sending in Member Milestones and Chapter News for the SUMMER issue of the LDEI Quarterly is  April 10, 2018.
Archived Quarterly magazines 
are available online.  If you are not receiving hard copies of Quarterly, please check your online contact information at 
www.ldei.org  If it is correct, please contact Greg Jewell to make sure you are on the mailing list.

Milestone Submission:
PROVIDE DAME'S NAME and CHAPTER. Submit up to 50 words about honors or important business-related activities to appear in the LDEI Quarterly. You may email a quality headshot to accompany your news. Press releases and cookbook covers are not accepted. Entries received after the deadline may appear in a following issue.
 
Quarterly Guidelines:
Photography/Images-Electronic images must be properly focused, in color with a minimum resolution of 300 dpi (TIFF or JPEG). Cell phone photos are acceptable if they meet resolution requirements. Do not send photos taken off the internet or embedded with text in Word files or PDF files. Identify individuals in photos from left to right in the message of your email. Include photo credits, if required. CAPTIONS ARE REQUIRED FOR PUBLICATION.
Les Dames d'Escoffier DC, www.lesdamesdc.org, Washington, DC 20013-1617
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