CHARLOTTE, N.C.,None — Text by Mary Marshall Photography by Gerin Choiniere
The Greater Piedmont Chapter of the March of Dimes 19th annual Signature Chefs Auction promises to be an evening guests will cherish for years to come. The black tie gala will be held on Thursday, November 4, 2010, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Carmel Country Club in South Charlotte.
The event features twenty of Charlotte's top chefs preparing their signature dish in tasting portions. Lead chef for the event is Geoff Blount, Baking and Pastry Arts Instructor at CPCC, who recruited the chefs from some of Charlotte's finest restaurants and coordinated the menus. Guests will be encouraged to sample the scrumptious delicacies as they view the silent auction and place bids.
A short March of Dimes program will follow the silent auction. Auctioneer Ernest Perry of Perry's Jewelry at South Park Mall will conduct the live auction, which features ten to fifteen items—trips, dinners and exquisite art pieces—all valued at $1,000 or more.
"The Signature Chefs Auction has become a well known event throughout the greater Piedmont area," says Karen Hughett, Senior Community Director for the Greater Piedmont Division of the March of Dimes. "Our goal is to raise $100,000 with all proceeds benefiting the Greater Piedmont Chapter." Tickets are $175 per person or $1,500 for a table of ten.
Serving as chairs for this year's event are Richard Wing, MD, administrative director of REACH, Reproductive Endocrinology Associates of Charlotte, and his wife, Brenda.
The Glenn Walthall family of South Charlotte is this year's Ambassador Family and will share their story during the program. "This is a cause near and dear to our family," says Walthall, a Board Member of the Greater Piedmont Chapter of the March of Dimes since 2007. "There are many touch points prior to, and after, child birth where March of Dimes research and funding can have a profound effect, including perinatal in-home monitoring for the mother, pre-term steroid injections to promote lung development and neo-natal ventilation for the newborn."
The Walthall triplets, Carson Davis, Ashton Grace and Sera Caitlin, who will celebrate their eighth birthdays in November, were born at twenty-nine and one-half weeks. Sandi Walthall was on bed rest from week sixteen, experienced premature labor on three separate occasions, and was hospitalized from week eighteen until she gave birth. The babies weighed between two pounds, eight ounces and two pounds, fifteen ounces at birth.
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Sera, which means "will be" in French, was so fragile that she was a "no touch" baby for the first five days. Her chances for survival were marginal. Gradually, she rebounded and progressed as the doctors hoped and expected. "She's our miracle baby," says Walthall. "Ashton seemed healthier at birth but early on, the doctors discovered she had an intestinal disorder and multiple heart defects. She had double hernia surgery at fourteen weeks and open heart surgery at seven months, which fully repaired her heart."
"Carson was our stellar baby from day one," comments Walthall. "He gave us the relief we needed to put all our energies into his sisters. Today, the triplets are perfectly healthy, normal children with no effects from premature birth." "We are very blessed to have three healthy children," adds Walthall. "Thanks to the incredible care and research funded by March of Dimes, premature babies can overcome tremendous odds and be healthy, thriving children. By sharing our story as the Ambassador Family, we hope to encourage others to support this cause." Founded by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938, all monies raised and invested in the March of Dimes are used to fund important research and programs that help moms have full-term pregnancies and babies begin healthy lives. Funds are also used to bring comfort and information to families whose babies need help to survive and thrive.
In 2010, the March of Dimes awarded $20 million in new research grants. They decreased the premature birth rate by three percent nationally. Their NICU Family Support program—a family-centered hospital-based program that provides help and comfort to families in the neonatal intensive care unit—expanded to 100 hospital locations, providing services to more than 75,000 families annually. Local March of Dimes accomplishments in 2010 include research grants awarded to UNC Charlotte, UNC Chapel Hill, Wake Forest University, NC State University and Duke University. Community and educational grants were awarded to agencies throughout the Chapter.
For reservations or more information about the Signature Chefs Auction call 704.377.2009 or email kwallace-hughett@marchofdimes.com.