Nashville, here we come! Registration for our 2019 LDEI Conference Nashville: Rhythm and Roots, October 24-27 is now available for registration online and a printed brochure will be coming to your mailbox soon.  Click here to register.

Book soon to receive the discounted hotel rate at the fantastic Loews Nashville. This vibrant metropolis, known as Music City - and capital of the state that tipped the scales and gave women the right to vote - is now a national culinary destination with so much to share. It's filled with history, beauty, and an amazing chapter of LDEI that is ready to roll out the "BLUE" carpet for all of us in October. 

Plan to arrive on Wednesday, October 23 to take advantage of a special program brought to you by a generous donation from the Brock Circle featuring Carla Hall. She will discuss her personal journey, "Being Authentic While Facing Adversity."  Arriving early for this Wednesday afternoon event will give you the opportunity to take advantage of the locally curated tours that begin bright and early Thursday morning, showing you Nashville from a unique perspective. Don't miss the chance to enjoy authentic Tennessee BBQ and listen to songwriters collaboratively create music at an optional event on Thursday night at the Green Door Gourmet.

The Nashville chapter has worked diligently to make your LDEI conference experience one you will not forget. I am very grateful to them and look forward keynote speaker Maneet Chauhan sharing her message with us.

You will find all relevant details of the tours, speakers and sessions outlined in the brochure. An after-conference Kentucky Bourbon and Culinary Tour, hosted, of course, by our Kentucky Dames, will end your LDEI Conference experience on a high note.

See you there!
-Ann Stratte, LDEI President

Gail Forman fell and broke two bones in her wrist during a visit with her son in London last week. She had surgery last Friday. We await more news.
 
Sheilah Kaufman fell July 4 on wet pavement, broke her elbow and the bone punctured the skin. She had surgery on the July 5, because there was a chance of infection. She cannot drive (or do a lot of other things) for at least two weeks.

EDITORS NOTE: If you can provide a meal, it would be much appreciated. Call Sheilah 301-299-5282 to let her know if you plan to drop off something.  10508 Tyler Terrace, Potomac, MD.

Ellen Kassoff Gray appeared on WAMU's The Kojo Nnamdi Show July 11 as part of a panel discussion about handling trash in DC and, specifically, to talk about how Equinox manages to compost its waste. Click here for more details.
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Gladys Abi-Najm and her family's Lebanese Taverna were presented with a 2019 Honorary Milestone Award for their 40 years of service in the community at the 37th annual RAMMY awards ceremony held on Sunday, June 30 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

Amy Brandwein was featured in the July issue of Food & Wine magazine about her work with DC Urban Greens.
https://amp.foodandwine.com/travel/restaurants/amy-brandwein-centrolina-urban-farming?source=dam
 
Ellen Gray and her husband, Chef Todd Gray were featured in the cover story for the June/July edition of Food Service Monthly focusing on their efforts to recycle and move toward zero waste in their kitchens.
http://foodservicemonthly.com/view-magazine/
 
Susan James' and husband Alan James' Stonyman Gourmet Farmers' regional farmstead artisanal cheeses were praised as "world class"  by Jose Andres in his new cookbook,   Vegetables Unleashed, A Cookbook (Ecco 2019).

Pati Jinich is part of a feature story, Starpower, about a behind-the-scenes look at local celebrities hide-aways in the July/August issue of Home and Design magazine.
https://www.homeanddesign.com/

Rachel Martin's 2017 Oceano Chardonnay, from her Spanish Springs Vineyard of Oceano Wines, won "Wine of the Year, Domestic", "Best of Show", "Best of Class", the Platinum Award and 95 points at the 2019 San Diego International Wine & Spirits Challenge in January; "Best of Show", "Best of Class" and the Platinum Award at the 2019 Critics Challenge International Wine & Spirits Competition on June 8 and 9 in San Diego and "Best of Class" and the Gold Medal at the 2019 International Women's Wine Competition held June 11 and 12 in Santa Rosa, CA.
 
Nancy Piho will host her 9th annual Shopping for Health conference in St. Louis in July. SFH brings together 25 supermarket dietitians from national chains and food and beverage industry leaders to discuss how both can offer healthier options to meet supermarket shoppers' needs.
 
Christianne Ricchi and Ristorante i Ricchi was presented with the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington's Honorary Milestone Award for her contributions over the past 30 years to the community at the 2019 RAMMYs Awards on June 30.  ​
 

MOORENKO'S ICE CREAM FACTORY TOUR AND TASTING
We hope you can join us!  Please note that tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance.  Tour Moorenko's ice cream factory, help make ice cream, learn about the process and the industry and take home a pint! If you haven't yet tried Susan Soorenko's ice cream, you need to join her and learn how she got started in this industry.
DATE:  Saturday, July 20
TIME:  2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
PLACE:  8810 Brookville Road, Silver Spring, MD  20910.  This is at the factory, not at the store
PRICE:  $25 Dames, $30 non-members (includes a $5 tax-exempt donation to LDEI Scholarships)
RSVP:  Click here to purchase your tickets on Eventbrite!

Chef/Owners Amy Brandwein, Centrolina, Ruth Gresser, Pizza Paradiso, and Danielle Harris were guests on WAMU's The Kojo Nnamdi Show June 6, for his program "Three Local Chefs On Owning Food Companies, Mentorship And Engaging With D.C." and Bettina Stern was a call in questioner.   https://thekojonnamdishow.org/shows/2019-06-06/three-local-chefs-on-owning-food-companies-mentorship-and-engaging-with-d-c 
 
Kristen Hartke's lovely story "To Commemorate a Loved One's Death, Some Turn to the Comfort and Memories of Food" appeared in the June 3 edition of The Washington Post 's Food section.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/to-commemorate-a-loved-ones-death-some-turn-to-the-comfort-and-memories-of-food/2019/05/31/c92989ec-7b2b-11e9-a5b3-34f3edf1351e_story.html?utm_term=.89f835226201
 

​CiCi Williamson did such an excellent job managing the Association of Food Journalists 2019 Awards Competition, she has been hired to manage the 2020 contest. This spring, CiCi handled a record 373 entries in 15 categories of food writing, videos, audios, and photos. Launched in 1986, AFJ's awards competition is the nation's longest-running contest for food journalists. 

Gladys Abi-Najm's family's restaurant, Lebanese Taverna, and Christina Ricchi's i Ricchi will receive the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington's 2019 Honorary Milestone RAMMY Awards at the organization's annual gala Sunday, June 30, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. This award commemorates local restaurants and RAMW members who have been in business for more than 25 years and is bestowed upon the Washington region's most celebrated dining institutions. 

Cecilia Glembocki created and presented the American Egg Board's commemorative egg to First Lady Melania Trump on April 22. Cecilia used quilling, a centuries-old art form whereby small, rolled strips of paper are shaped and glued together to make designs, to decorate the egg.  
 
Pati Jinich has won her second James Beard Foundation Award. "Pati's Mexican Table - Tijuana: Stories from the Border" received the top prize in the  Television Program, in Studio or Fixed Location category.  The program airs locally on WETA-TV and is distributed nationally by American Public Television.

Amy Riolo received a Certificate of Recognition from the City of Baltimore for serving as chair of the Baltimore-Luxor-Alexandria Sister City Committee.  Amy also was named the first honorary member of Baltimore Sisters Cities, Inc. for securing a $112,000 grant through the African Urban Poverty Alleviation Program to provide drinking water for a remote rural village in Egypt.

Linda Roth has assumed the role of CEO of LRA Associates where she will continue to supervise business and financial operations for her 37 year-old company that provides media relations, integrated marketing, digital content and special events. Long-time LRA vice president, Anthony Hesselius, has been named president. LRA is located in the burgeoning Adams Morgan neighborhood.