Canceled Celebrity Chefs event turns into Salvation Army benefit

Yesterday's unfortunate weather shift caused JFCS of the Suncoast to cancel its annual Celebrity Chefs event at The Resort at Longboat Key Club, turning it into a Salvation Army food donation benefit instead.

Upon making the decision to cancel the event and in keeping with JFCS’ mission to turn a negative into a positive and take care of the underserved in the community, Laura McManus-Mesia, chief development officer for JFCS, and her team reached out to the participating restaurants to see if any of them would consider donating non-perishable food from the event to the downtown Salvation Army.

Restaurants including The Resort at Longboat Key Club, TableSeide Restaurant Group’s Libby’s Café + Bar, Louies Modern and Muse at The Ringling, and Mattison’s Longboat Key all had non-perishable food items and willingly offered to donate their food. In addition, the restaurants joined the JFCS team in the delivery of the food to the downtown Salvation Army. Chefs from the participating restaurants also went on site to assist the Salvation Army kitchen team with the night’s dinner preparation that serves the homeless and underserved families in the area.

“It is testimony to the restaurants’ commitment to taking care of Sarasota’s underserved and homeless that they not only offered to donate their food but to also step in and help deliver and prepare the food with the Salvation Army’s chefs and volunteers,” said McManus-Mesia. “While we’re disappointed the event could not take place, we are delighted such generosity exists in our community."