Attendees of the 10th annual Saint Martin’s Gala 2015 are in for a treat. Not only will the stars of ABC’s “The CHEW” — an Emmy Award winning cooking show — be on hand to prepare a five-course meal in front of the live audience, they’ll also have specially designed runways that allow the celebrity chefs to get closer to the crowd. “We really wanted to take advantage of their presence here and create more interaction with the guests,” said Genevieve Chan, vice president of marketing and communications for Saint Martin’s University.
All monies raised at the sold-out Nov. 7 event — which includes a live auction and paddle raise — will go toward student scholarships. Each year, the event has grown in popularity, with attendance increasing from 500 to a record high of more than 700 guests who plan to attend Gala 2015. Due to this rise in attendance, the organizing committee has added more television screens for additional viewing access. “We want people to feel like they’re hearing and seeing the chefs’ demos,” Chan said. Daphne Oz, the fifth member of “The CHEW” team, will be making an appearance via video due to the recent birth of her second child.
For the fifth time, the event will have a hospitality-based theme, an idea that began with Armandino Batali, a Saint Martin’s alumnus and the father of celebrity chef Mario Batali. “As a Benedictine university, one of our key tenets is hospitality,” said Chan. “This event is an expansion of that theme — the idea of celebrating with food and coming together.” In 2011, Mario Batali became the first celebrity chef to headline the gala.
This year, Batali is accompanied by his “CHEW” co-stars, Michael Symon (who was the featured chef at the 2013 gala), Carla Hall and Clinton Kelly. Aside from creating gourmet dishes and pairing them with selected wines, all four chefs will be posting and tweeting live throughout the evening. “We wanted to incorporate a lot of social media,” Chan said. Doing so gives alumni far and wide a chance to follow the event, even if they can’t attend.
Preparation for the gala starts literally a year in advance. “The planning for this began the day of the 2014 gala,” Chan said. “It takes a university. It’s just amazing how much faculty, staff and students participate. This is an all-in event.” More than 200 volunteers from the university and surrounding community come together to make the gala happen. “We have professors in the audience rallying support for auction items, students acting as runners during the auction, and student speakers,” she said. “They get pretty excited about it.”
Three members of the board of trustees act as a tri-chair for the gala’s executive committee: Armandino Batali ’59, Rick Panowicz and Kathy Lombardo. They meet two times a month and are responsible for all of the planning around fundraising and logistics. “We have a fabulous tri-chair,” said Chan.
Cecilia Loveless, vice president of institutional advancement, said the gala is unique in one important way: “One hundred percent of the proceeds support scholarships for students,” she explained. “It’s an opportunity for Saint Martin’s to showcase its mission and dedication to its students.”
Since 2011, the event has raised over $3 million toward scholarships, creating opportunities for many students who would otherwise struggle to attend. “We make every effort to make this education as accessible as possible,” Chan said. “Ninety-four percent of our students receive some sort of financial aid.” More than one-third of the university’s students come from underrepresented populations, including first-generation college students and students from low-income and ethnically diverse backgrounds.
While the gala is in its 10th year, the celebrity chef theme is in its fifth. After Mario Batali was the guest of honor in 2011, other celebrities like Guy Fieri, Michael Symon and Lidia Bastianich followed. This is the first time the university has had multiple headliners in one year.
The five “The CHEW” hosts share a passion for food and lifestyle. Batali and Symon are both renowned chefs who have been featured on “Iron Chef America,” Carla Hall is an alumnus of “Top Chef,” Clinton Kelly is an entertainment specialist who co-hosted “What Not to Wear” for 10 years, and Daphne Oz is a wellness enthusiast and author. Between the five chefs, they run 31 restaurants and have authored 14 books.
You can learn more about Gala 2015 by visiting the event website or by contacting the Saint Martin’s University Office of Institutional Advancement at 360-486-8885 or gala@stmartin.edu.
