Food 101 - Fine Dining, Five-Star Results

It was fine dining and five-star treatment for guests attending Springs' October 15 Food 101 fundraiser, which raised more than $55,000 for the school’s financial aid program and other initiatives.

The ISS Parents Association organized and hosted the event, which gave guests the chance to return to “school” and experience an educational, entertaining evening revolving around the topic of food.

Guests began the evening by “starting their tab” at registration, and then enjoyed drinks as well as heavy hors d’oeuvres provided by Brick & Tin, Chez Lulu, Dyron’s Lowcountry, Flip Burger Boutique, GianMarco’s Restaurant, Jim ‘N Nick’s Bar-B-Q, Max’s Delicatessen, and the ISS Dining Hall. An outdoor setting by the ISS lake and music provided by the Birmingham Heritage Band provided a perfect backdrop and start to the night.

As guests finished their hors d’oeuvres, they took in a “school”-wide meeting that featured the first-ever Parent Iron Chef Competition, pitting parents from each grade against each other in a contest judged by area chefs and alumni. In a fierce competition using secret ingredients from the school’s organic garden, 8th Grade Parent Chef Marie Baxley and Parent Sous Chef Tom Barr prevailed with their dish, “Tuna Gareth Vaughan,” named for Vaughan, the school’s Director.

The school’s John Badham Theater was transformed into Kitchen Stadium for the competition, judged by Randall Baldwin of Dyron’s Lowcountry, Scott Bourgeois of Flip Burger Boutique, Carole Griffin '78 of Continental Bakery/Chez Lulu, Ron Stewart '73 of Flip Burger Boutique, and Michael McCullers '89, writer and director of “Baby Mama” and other feature films. Other parent chefs and sous chefs were Lisa Balazs, Teresa Chacana, Christine Copeland, Carole Mazer, Bob Pollard, Joe Simonetti '75, Stephanie Thomas, and Missy Waddell.

The more than 150 guests then took two food-related classes that were offered by Stewart and Griffin as well as Springs faculty members Bob Cooper, Tanya Hyatt, Kelly Jacobs, Melody Machen, Maria Martinez, Magalie Minaud, David Noone, Bob Pollard and Douglas Ray. Topics ranged from “Dining in the Age of Louis XIV” to “Edible Science” to “Plums, Peaches and Pork: Poetry for Foodies.”

The evening ended with desserts by Café de Paris, Continental Bakery and the ISS Dining Hall, and the chance to bid on a “buffet” of silent auction items such as vacation homes, artwork and restaurant gift certificates. Guests could also purchase items needed by Springs students and faculty that were listed on the Food 101 “Smorgas(White)Board.”

During the silent auction time, the event offered an “after-school elective” featuring Edwin Marty '90, Executive Director of The Hampstead Institute in Montgomery and former Executive Director of Jones Valley Urban Farm in Birmingham, who showed a brief video based on his upcoming book, Breaking Through Concrete.

Food 101 sponsors included Stewart; McCullers and his wife, Sidney; ISS Parents Association and Friends (Sherry and Andy Driggers, Jan Fortson, Beverly and Dan Marson, Virginia and David Smith, Janet Perry Stewart, and Cindy, Greg, Blake ’02 and Wes ’05 Van Horn); ISS Alumni Council Members (Fergus Tuohy ’96 and Ameriprise, Frances Ross Nolan ’77, James Scott ’75 and Jocelyn Bradley Palmer ’77); Janice and Tim Laney; Sara and Tommy Moody ’64; Susan and Tennant McWilliams ’61; Magalie Minaud; Chris Tetzlaff; Steve Arnold ’66 and Mark White of White Arnold Dowd P.C.; Class of 2014 Parents and Teacher (Rebecca Garity DePalma ’80, Carole and Michael Mazer, Beth Mulvey and David Noone, Janis and Sean O’Malley, Lauren and Marc Perlman, Douglas Ray, Kiki and Pierre Scalise, Beth and James Scott ’75, Carla and Austin Williams, and Lesli and Kneeland Wright); Clara Chung and Carol Smith of Birmingham Allergy & Asthma Specialists; Dorrie Fuchs and Gareth Vaughan; Lisa and Rob Balazs; and Valley Printing.

Charlie Yeates '71 and International Wines donated the wine for the evening, and a host of alumni, board members, parents, faculty and friends of the school provided silent auction items as well as bottles of wine that were wrapped and sold sight unseen to guests.

This is the third installment of the school’s “101” fundraisers, which began in 2009 with a Wine 101 event and continued with last year’s Film 101. The “101” events benefit the ISS Annual Fund, which supports need-based scholarships, student activities, faculty salaries and updates to campus facilities.

“We were pleased to have had another successful ‘101’ event that epitomizes Springs’ motto of ‘Learning Through Living’ and raises funds for the school,” says ISS parents Elizabeth North, who chaired the Film 101 Committee.

In addition to North, the Film 101 Committee was comprised of Jeanette Brockington, Susan Cutler, Lucia Delchamps, Rebecca Garity DePalma ’80, Andy Driggers, Beverly Marson, Sharon Putman, LeeAnn Ramey, Holly Ellis Whatley ’84, and ISS staff members Wendy Bowman, Kathryn D’Arcy, Melanie Kieve and Beth Mulvey.