Hurrah! Bette Alberts, Nancy Baggett, Bonnie Benwick,Pati Jinich, Katherine Miller, Joan Nathan and Louise Nielsen

Bette Alberts, Madame Le Maître (chapter president) of the Washington, D.C., Commanderie de Bordeaux, led the chapter to host its international Board of Governors meeting in June, celebrating the organization's 60th anniversary. Bette is the first woman to head a chapter in the U.S. Commanderie de Bordeaux which comprises 33 chapters with 1200 members across the U.S. It is also affiliated with the worldwide network of 82 members in 26 countries under the Bordeaux-based Grand Conseil du Vin de Bordeaux.
 
Nancy Baggett's new book The Art of Cooking with Lavender won a Bronze Award from Independent Publisher in the "Living Now" Ethnic, Holiday and Specialty Cookbook category. The awards are given to books that make a contribution to "living better" today.  Nancy's book has been very popular with lavender growers and their customers and will be going into a second printing in December.
 
Bonnie Benwick, Deputy Food Editor/Recipe Editor and Joe Yonan, Food and Dining Editor of the Washington Post won the Association of Food Journalists' Award for Best Newspaper Food Coverage, above 155,000 circulation. The presentation was made during AFJ's annual conference in Philadelphia on September 13.
 
Pati Jinich's "Pati's Mexican Table," the Emmy and James Beard award nominated cooking and travel series, began its sixth season on PBS and public television stations September 9. Pati's new 13-episode season features the Mexican state of Oaxaca a hub of art and cuisine that has been hugely influential on Mexico's gastronomy and culture for centuries. Watch the trailer.
 
Katherine Miller was recognized by Food & Wine Magazine  as one of 2017's Most Innovative Women in Food and Drink. As founder of the Chef Action Network, a nonprofit that educates chefs about food and nutrition issues and inspires them to use their influence to make a difference, Miller was named as one of 20 "trailblazers and trendsetters who are raising the bar and reshaping our world." http://www.foodandwine.com/lifestyle/most-innovative-women-2017
 
Joan Nathan has partnered with Whole Foods Market's Mid-Atlantic Region to offer prepared dishes and recipes for customers during the Jewish high holidays. Five dishes from Joan's King Solomon's Table cookbook are being featured at Whole Foods' hot bars, prepared food cases, and bakery departments in Pennsylvania, Southern N.J., Maryland, Washington, D.C., Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio, from Sept. 13 to 27. The dishes also can be ordered online.

Louise Nielsen and a group of her Anne Arundel Community College culinary students were invited to present at the Maryland Department of Agriculture's 10th annual Governors Buy-local Cookout on July 20 at the Maryland Government House. The Buy-Local Cookout encourages Marylanders to eat at least one locally grown or raised product each day. Chef Nielsen's Culinary Club members produced bite-size samples of three different student-designed recipes for the over 600 guests at the event. ​