Join Us at a Party to Prevent Hunger
/Each Ticket Provides 500 Meals to Hungry People in the DMV
A great party for a great cause? Join us at the Capital Area Food Bank's annual Blue Jeans Ball on April 23rd and help change the lives of people who experience food insecurity.
Lives like Lisa Messerschmidt’s.
A few years ago, with a parent who needed care and no siblings to help, Lisa decided to leave her job and the family relied on her husband’s salary alone. Things were lean but fine.
Until her husband lost his contracting job as result of the government shutdown. Before long, what they thought was impossible happened, and they became one of the families they had only read about. Unable to pay their bills, their car was repossessed and their credit crashed. As Lisa and her husband looked for work, they spent the next few years relying on family and friends, at times living without heat, medical care or most often, food.
Things finally began to turn around when Lisa’s family sought help from a nonprofit in their neighborhood, which helped them get the training and resources they needed to get back on their feet – starting with vegetables, fruit and other ingredients supplied by the Capital Area Food Bank. In Lisa’s words, “having food on the table made everything else seem possible.” Today, Lisa works for the food bank, making a difference for those who are struggling.
The Capital Area Food Bank helped to turn crisis into stability for Lisa’s family, and by attending this year’s Blue Jeans Ball, you can do the same for others: each ticket to the Blue Jeans Ball provides 500 life-changing meals for people in need in our area. The food bank is able to invest in this many meals because of the quantity of donations it receives, plus its incredible purchasing power—it distributes 46 million pounds of food each year, a third of which is fresh fruits and vegetables.
While the purchase of your ticket can make a huge difference for a mother, father, child or grandparent, living in our community, it’s not the only reason to wear your best denim on April 23rd. The event will feature 40+ savory and sweet bites from local favorites like Colada Shop (“Little Havana Done Right” - Washington Post), Oyamel, Pub and the People and more.
If you’re lucky enough to nab a VIP ticket before they run out, you can also look forward to tasting the best of the party: Chef Chair Ryan Ratino of Ripple is already prepping ingredients for his Kampachi Crudo with Uni Botarga and Leche de Tigre Mousse, and Mixology Chair Gina Chersevani of Buffalo & Bergen will pour you a cocktail worth toasting to.
And keep your eyes open for a few new elements at this year’s event, from a jeans-clad stilt walker to a New Orleans-style brass band. Try your luck in the new Spirits Pull, where a donation gives you a chance to pull a cork and win a bottle of top shelf liquor. And get ready to cast your bid for future deliciousness, with auction items including:
- A tour of the BrightFarms greenhouse for a group of twenty, with lunch and as many greens as you can carry
- Dinner for 10 and "Farm-to-Taco" tutorial at Chaia in Georgetown
- Pizza-Making and Beer Party for 10 with Pizza Paradiso’s founding chef, Ruth Gresser
- Wine class for 10, plus paired canapes, at Ripple
Just one night of food and fun can make all the difference for our neighbors in need. See you there!
Buy tickets for the Blue Jeans Ball, including VIP tickets.
When: Sunday, April 23, 2017
5 pm: VIP reception
6 pm: Tastings, cocktails and silent auction
8 pm: Program & live auction
Where: Marriott Marquis Hotel, 901 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC20001
