ST. AUGUSTINE, FLA., August 18, 2004—The American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF), through its philanthropic arm, the Chef & Child Foundation (CCF), has designated Camp Boggy Creek, Eustis, Fla., as its major beneficiary this year to receive funds to aid children in need.
Reimund Pitz, certified executive chef (CEC) of Orlando Country Club and president of the Chef & Child Foundation, announced the donation of $10,000 to Camp Boggy Creek July 18 at a fund-raising event at SeaWorld Amusement Park during ACF’s 2004 National Convention in Orlando, Fla. According to Pitz, beginning this year, CCF will name one outstanding organization annually to receive a substantial donation.
Camp Boggy Creek, located on 232 acres of wooded land in central Florida, caters to children 7 to 16 years old with chronic or life-threatening illnesses. Contributions from individuals, healthcare partnerships, foundations and corporations provide funding so that children and their families can avail themselves of the camp’s many offerings – cabins, dining hall, medical center, swim center, farm, sports/recreation center, etc. – at no cost. The camp, co-founded by actor Paul Newman, is patterned after Newman’s original Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Ashford, Conn.
The dining hall at Camp Boggy Creek was co-funded by Orlando-based Darden Restaurants and Tampa-based Outback Steakhouse, Inc. Two chefs and a kitchen crew feed as many as 300 campers, staff and volunteers three meals a day. Said Pitz, the CCF donation will help fund foodservice at the camp.
“We are grateful that chefs and partners of ACF are so supportive of the Chef & Child Foundation, and so dedicated to our primary goal of meeting the nutrition needs of children, that we may support the work of such a deserving organization,” said Pitz. The mission of the nonprofit Chef & Child Foundation is to educate and assist the family in understanding proper nutrition and to be the voice of ACF in its fight against childhood hunger. To learn more about CCF, visit www.acfchefs.org.
ACF learned of the work of Camp Boggy Creek through its chapter in the area, ACF Gulf to Lakes Chefs & Cooks Chapter, members of which have donated time and resources to assist Camp Boggy Creek with food preparation and special events since 1997.
The American Culinary Federation, Inc., which observes its 75th anniversary in 2004, establishes and upholds the highest standards of cooking and enhances the culinary profession internationally through education, certification and a fraternal bond of respect and integrity.
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Chef2Chef News Desk