ROMULUS, Mich. — AmericaJR.com had the honor of attending the second annual Champs for Mott culinary gala on Saturday, May 16. This event was sponsored by Delta Airlines and Lexus of Ann Arbor. It was located in a very unique place–inside a Delta Airlines hangar at Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
This event benefited the U of M Congenital Heart Center and the Charles Woodson Clinical Research Fund located at Mott Children’s Hospital. Their vision is “to help children with life-threatening heart disease to survive and also support research of childhood diseases to find real cures.”
Dozens of culinary restaurants and their chefs were on hand to prepare their signature dishes. Some of them were:
1. Chef Rocco Whalen from Farenheit Restaurant in Cleveland, OH. He made frequent appearances on the Food Network including “Cutthroat Kitchen” and “Fat Chef.” He served honey mascarpone polenta.
2. Chef Eve Aranoff from Frita Batidos Restaurant in Ann Arbor, MI. She competed on “Top Chef” Season 6. She served pulled pork sandwiches.
3. Chef Annie Pettry from Decca Lounge and Restaurant in Louisville, KY. She was the 2014 Food & Wine “The People’s Best New Chef” and a 2014 Star Chef’s Rising Star. She served steak tartare.
4. Chef Dan Bonanno from A Pig in a Fur Coat in Madison, WI. He was featured in Conde Nest Traveler as one of the “Best New Restaurants in the Midwest.”
From seared scallops and mussels, tuna crudo crostini, sushi, pan seared scallops and braised pork belly, mini Polish plate to black garlic seared halibut, there was a variety of food for every palate. This strolling dining experience with gourmet food and drink was prepared right in front of you.
There was also a silent auction which featured several items such as a Red Wing hockey stick autographed by Jimmy Howard, a DeAndre Levy signed football, a Dennis Rodman jersey and a Calvin Johnson autographed mini helmet, just to name a few. A live auction followed with several sports packages which raised several thousand dollars for each.
Also on hand was a Delta Airlines 757 plane, which you could walk through and sit in the cockpit.
Kelvin Washington, who works for ESPN in Los Angeles, was the emcee of the program and told his story that he grew up in Ann Arbor, Mich. and went to Pioneer High School. He was 19 years old when he had heart difficulties and went to the U of M hospital for a week. He noted that the quality of care was the best you can get.
“Their world class doctors were top notch,” added Washington. He also noted that his profession is noted for statistics. So he gave us some: One in 100 children are born with congenital heart disease. Mott is one of the top children’s hospitals in the country and lots of children are surviving with congenital heart disease. There is a 95 percent success rate from all the surgeries.
The Dan Rafferty Band concluded the evening featuring Motown songs and dancing. A fun time was had by all.
For more information about the CHAMPs for Mott gala, visit http://www.champsformott.org.
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