Dear Sister Dames,
Thanks to all who gathered for our Holiday Potluck. We had great fun, delicious food and drink and warm conversations. Everyone enjoyed meeting and greeting our special guest, Hayley Matson-Mathes, our LDEI president from Honolulu. Thanks, especially, to Linda Roth and her husband Jonathan Kahan, for opening their beautiful home to us.
Just after the new year, we will continue our preparation for our Women in Gastronomy Symposium in earnest. As you know, it will be our biggest fundraiser of the year. Since we have increased our scholarships and grants budgets this year, let us all work together to make WIG 2018 a tremendous success so we can help other women achieve their goals. Our programs are finalized and posted on our website. Please volunteer, attend and get the word out.
We are now halfway through our fiscal year and I hope you have enjoyed our Dames only educational programs. We look forward to organizing more public programs for the second half of the year. Please let Bonnie Benwick, benwickb@gmail.com, know if you have any program ideas and are willing to plan and execute them. We are all in this together.
Finally, as you consider year-end donations, please include LDE-DC's grants and scholarships on your list.
I know that the holidays are a very busy time for all of us. So, to Dames who are preparing and selling their holiday gift items, catering holiday parties, hosting customers who are celebrating the season in their restaurants, and preparing for your own family gatherings, I wish you all a prosperous, happy and blessed holiday season.
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 |
Jodi Lehr's beautiful mother, Barbara (Bobbie) Lehr, passed away suddenly on Thursday, December 14 at age 83. Loved by all, her funeral was Sunday, December 17 in Jodi's hometown of Long Beach, New York. Tomorrow evening, December 21, Jodi, her husband, William Gutierrrez, and sons Robert and Marco will sit Shiva in from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., 11014 South Glen Road, Potomac, MD 20854. All are welcome.
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Drew Faulkner and her husband, David, proudly celebrated their son, Michael, as he was awarded Eagle Scout in a special ceremony on Sunday, December 17 in Bethesda, MD. Drew received an Eagle Mom pin from Michael.
After 28 years as director of Union Station Events, Michele Jacobs is leaving to start her own independent consulting business. She says "I can sell, I know operations and personnel and I know the financial aspects of a business. That's why I thrived at the Station."
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The 2018 New Member Drive opens a bit early to coordinate with our Woman In Gastronomy symposium in March. Please consider nominating qualified colleagues and acquaintances who will bring their enthusiasm, talent, and ideas as active members of Les Dames d 'Escoffier's DC chapter. Requirements for membership include, but are not limited to, a minimum of FIVE years as a distinguished professional in the food, beverage or hospitality industry. If you have a candidate you would like to nominate or sponsor, please send her name, title, email address, and phone number to Julia Rutland atjuliarutland@me.com by February 2, 2018.
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Linda Roth, generously hosted a house full of Dames for our chapter's annual holiday potluck. Delicious drinks and treats abounded. The annual gathering is always a wonderful time to reconnect and greet friends new and old. 
Bottom row: Susan Delbert, Susan Wallace
Next row: Haley Matson-Mathes, Bette Alberts, Janet Yu, Judy Rusignuolo, Paula Jacobson
Next row: Marsha Echols, Nongkran Daks, Karen Vartan, Ann Stratte
Next row: Eileen Dykes, Amy Riolo, Lizette Corro
Next row: Sheila Kaufman, Janet Cam
Top row: Linda Roth (partially hidden), Julia Rutland, Linda Forristal, Katherine Newell Smith
Dames enjoy lunch at Centrolina.
L to r: Ann Stratte, Amy Brandwein, Joan Nathan and Hayley Matson- Mathes
More than 60 attended the Ann Arbor Chapter's first fundraiser, a "Downton Abbey" tea and talk by CiCi Williamson at the Ann Arbor City Club on Thursday, December 14. Many Dames provided special teas and other fancy teatime fare including scones by Amy Emberling of Zingerman's Bakehouse. Heroic efforts on CiCi's part ensured her presence at the event. Her first plane to Detroit was diverted to Dayton, OH, where she spent the night. She flew back to DC and boarded again to Detroit. Success! While she missed a dinner in her honor the night before, she arrived in time to star in the fundraiser.
L to r: Donna Tope, Sheree Thibault, Amy Emberling, prospective member Stephanie, Lizzie Burt, Ricky Agranoff, CiCi Williamson, Antoinette Benjamin, Patricia Pooley, Katherine Farrell.
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Do your holiday shopping through LDEI's generous Affinity Program where you will find discounts on a wide range of Dames' and partner products including travel, professional services, appliances and cookware. Log in to the Members Only section on the LDEI website, www.ldei.org. then click on the Affinity Program tab at the top of the page. Happy shopping!
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Our 11th biannual Women in Gastronomy symposium takes place Saturday, March 10, 2018 at the Universities of Shady Grove. The symposium is our largest fundraising event. We are fortunate that over 50% of our membership participates as speakers, committee chairs and members, program organizers, demonstrators and room coordinators. We anticipate another successful event and hope even more Dames volunteer this year. Pati Jinich is our keynote speaker.
Clear your shelves for the Holidays. We will (once again) stage the ever-popular Cookbook Jumble during the Expo at WIG. Les Dames can issue a 501 (c) (3) donation confirmation for tax purposes. Please contact me at the National Press Club, 529 14th Street, NW, in downtown DC, to drop them off there--or you can drop them at my home in Silver Spring if that is more convenient. I can give location details when/if you phone (202)486-4850. The NPC is at the corner of 14th and F streets, about two blocks from the White House on the 13th floor. If you would like to phone ahead, chef office is (202) 662-7514. Collection will begin after the holidays.
Culinary Garage Sale, chair, Katherine Newell Smith kns4pr@erols.com. Please begin to sort through your bookshelves for unwanted cookbooks and your closets and cupboards for new, unused, or gently used culinary items to donate. Kindly email, text or call (703) 475-1833 or call (301) 907-7590 ahead to arrange a time to drop off your donations at Katherine's home at 5525 Devon Road, Bethesda, MD (just off Bradley, south of Wilson Lane)
Dames and non-Dames can participate in offering their goods, whether it is simply info about a restaurant with or without tastings, selling their cookbooks directly to the attendees or promoting a product. Please think about people you know who may want to exhibit. There will be a modest charge for a table at the Expo to cover costs.
Please consider offering product, gift cards, etc, to fill conference attendee goody bags. We also encourage anyone with a business to donate business cards to be included so conference attendees can learn about all the amazing businesses Dames have to offer. Items from non-Dame businesses are also welcome.
More info to come in the next Entre News!
Also, Julia Rutland is updating the Dames' Restaurant guide for the symposium, so please send her the name of your restaurant to include on our list at juliarutland@me.com. Also, please consider contributing to the conference goody bags.
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SAVE THE DATE! PROSPECTIVE NEW MEMBER RECEPTION
Please join sister Dames and meet prospective candidates for 2018-2019 membership
DATE: Sunday, February 11, 2018
TIME and PLACE: To be determined
PRICE: Nominal for current Dames and no cost to our prospective members
HOW TO FIND THE RIGHT PR FIT - Kyle Schmitz - POSTPONED
New date TBA
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For those of you who missed our program last month, jointly hosted with WCR, on sexual harassment in the hospitality industry, you are welcome to view it in its entirety. Click here for the link.
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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 kns4pr@erols.com 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.
Thank you for you continued interest and participation.
Katherine Newell Smith
Founding Editor, Entre News
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Social Media Connections
Connect with Sister Dames
 LesDamesDC
 @LesDamesDC
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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.
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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.
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Suzanne DeGalan
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)
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Please submit your Entre News information in a brief, concise statement to Katherine Newell Smith at kns4pr@erols.com. |
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.
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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 lesdamesdc.list@gmail.com
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.
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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:
The deadline for sending in Member Milestones and Chapter News for the SPRING issue of the LDEI Quarterly is January 15, 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.
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. |
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