It's our EIGHTH ANNUAL Diamonds in the Rough fundraising dinner to fight Parkinson's disease. Please mark the date on your calendar - Saturday night, October 2, 2010, for this extraordinary evening of culinary excellence and fine entertainment. The festivities will begin with a dinner prepared by one of the best chefs in the world, my friend, Charlie Trotter. He is a 10-time recipient of the prestigious James Beard Foundation award. Wine Spectator has called his restaurant in Chicago - Charlie Trotter's - the "Best Restaurant in the World for wine and food." Charlie is also the author of 14 cookbooks and three management books. Later in the evening we'll be entertained by Mary Jenson. Continuing in our tradition of presenting remarkable musical talent with whom you may not be familiar, Mary is a vibrant vocalist with a love of both jazz and modern music. Critics have used the following superlatives to describe Mary's renditions: "A serious jazz singer," "Jenson doesn't always fit the stereotype of what a 'jazz singer' entails, and that's a good thing," "Ms. Jenson is blessed with a lively alto, an actor's sense with lyrics, and impeccable timing... West coast cool; strong, with no tricks..." This remarkable evening will take place in the winery of Diamond Creek Vineyards, and it is limited to 48 people at $2,500 per person. This year also marks a milestone - it was 30 years ago that my late husband, Al, was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. He battled it for more than 20 years. Each year we get closer and closer to finding better treatments, and ultimately, a cure for this dreadfully incapacitating disease. In our seven Diamonds in the Rough events so far, we have raised, in total, close to $1.5 million for the Parkinson's Institute in Sunnyvale, California. From the bottom of my heart, I cannot thank you enough for your continuing support in this battle against Parkinson's. As my friends down under say, "Good on you."
|
