Menu for Hope V: ‘Tis the Season to Make a Difference

A few people have asked me why I didn’t participate in this year’s edition of A Menu for Hope. Truth is, as lame an excuse as it is, the event snuck up on me during the thick of the seasonal crunch and I just didn’t have the wherewithal to put everything together in time. Add to that the fact that I’ve been a holiday season slacker this year – I’m only now doing my shopping, all of it on-line – and you’ve got the perfect recipe for non-participation.

My absence aside, I’m confident that A Menu for Hope, now in its fifth year, will continue to build on the success of years past. Toward that end, I’d like to encourage each and every one of you who visit here to visit the official Menu for Hope host sites and to consider making a difference in this year’s program. For every ten bucks you donate, you’ll get a chance to win one of the many great prizes that have been donated by restaurants, wineries and some of my fellow food and wine bloggers from around the world.

As always, A Menu for Hope’s creator Pim Techamuanvivit is leading the drive. You’ll find a full listing of all of the raffle prizes up for grabs at her blog, Chez Pim. If you’d prefer to narrow things right down to the wine-specific options, you can visit Vinography, where Alder Yarrow is once again coordinating the vinous contributions to A Menu for Hope.

Photo courtesy of Chez Pim.
All proceeds from this year’s A Menu for Hope will once again be managed through the United Nations World Food Programme and will be targeted directly toward helping schoolchildren and the agricultural economy in rural Lesotho, Africa. In Pim’s own words, the contributions from last year’s program,

“Bought 388,000 meals in Lesotho schools, which fed over 19,000 poor hungry children with school meals for a whole month. The children received food in primary schools across the remote mountainous areas of Lesotho, which are the poorest and hungriest parts of the country.

Some of the money was used to buy food from local small scale farmers practicing sustainable farming methods in remote areas, providing them with guaranteed market for their products.”

My recommendations? Give generously this year. And give often. Or just give what you can. Pick a prize that’s not super high profile (but that appeals to you, of course) and you’ll exponentially increase your odds of winning something cool in the course of doing a good deed. This year’s program ends on Wednesday, December 24, so get moving. Every $10 makes a difference.

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A Last Call for Support of Menu For Hope

Will you have a few friends over for dinner sometime in the New Year? Or perhaps you’ll go out to a favorite BYO restaurant with a small group of like-minded food and wine lovers? I certainly hope the answer you’ve all silently delivered to one or both of these questions is “Well, duh, of course.” How cool might it be not to have to worry about what wines to select, to buy and to pour for the evening, but rather to have a wine guy serve and entertain you and your group? For as little as $10, you can win the chance to do just that.

In the process, you can also help to build a sustainable way for small farmers in Lesotho, Africa to feed their children and community without having to rely on outside financial assistance or on surplus grain shipments from the other side of the globe.

Today is the next to last day of the 4th annual Menu For Hope and this is my last – and last minute – call to action. Last year, Menu For Hope III raised over $60,000 in support of the United Nations World Food Programme. This year’s edition builds on that mission, with a more targeted delivery of your donations. And the goal, of course, is to at least equal the total donations raised in last year’s campaign. As of 10:00 AM this morning, our total sits right at $51K, so there’s still a way to go in the last two days.

Please help make it happen. For those of you who have considered it but not yet acted, or for those that are learning about MFH for the first time, you can visit my original post for the full details of my prize and for instructions on how to participate. And if you’re interested in other options, the entire list of prizes from around the world can be viewed at Chez Pim.

My thanks go out to those of you who have already made a contribution. Good luck! I’d also like to thank a couple of my fellow Philadelphia-area bloggers: Taylor at Mac & Cheese and Jennie at Straight from the Farm for helping to spread the word, and David at PhilaFoodie for also contributing a worthy prize to the program.

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Mid-Term at Menu for Hope

Ten bucks. That's about two espresso drinks and a pastry at your chosen local coffee shop. Or it could be an easy, meaningful way to help those in need. And to get a chance to win my sommelier services -- and some tasty wine, to boot -- for an evening.

Check out my original Menu For Hope posting for full details and participation instructions. There's only a week remaining until the campaign ends. So what's to think about? Make a difference now!

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Win Me For a Night!

Yes, that's WIN, not wine. I’ve donated my services to Menu For Hope, a worldwide food and wine bloggers’ fundraising effort. Now, in its fourth year, Menu For Hope was founded by Pim at Chez Pim. This year’s proceeds will be directed through the UN World Food Programme to benefit hungry farmers in Lesotho, Africa. Every ten dollars you donate gets you a “raffle ticket.” Each ticket can then be designated toward the prize of your choice – mine, natch! – and a computer program takes care of picking the winners. Specific instructions for entering can be found at the bottom of this post. So, on to the prize in question!

Private Sommelier Services Provided by David McDuff (Prize Code WB23)
My donation consists of private sommelier services, provided by yours truly, for a party of up to six wine and food loving adults. I will bring an eclectic array of small farm wines – some from my own cellar – matched to the menu or theme for your event. I will pour for you and discuss the selected wines throughout the course of the evening. I am willing to do this anywhere in the greater Philadelphia area and am open to travel, if expenses are covered, throughout the Washington, DC to New York, NY corridor. The event can be held in your home or in a restaurant (if you’re willing to pick up the bill for my dinner and any corkage fees). My contribution of wine and sommelier services is valued at over $500 but you can have a chance to “win me for a night” for as little as $10. Of course, the more tickets you buy, the greater your chances of winning and the more you help to support a fantastic cause. Prize code: WB23.

No procrastinating now – just donate! And be sure to check out the rest of the donations from throughout wine blogdom at Alder Yarrow’s Vinography.

To make a donation:

1. Choose a prize or prizes of your choice from our Menu for Hope.
   
   
2. Go to the donation site at http://www.firstgiving.com/menuforhope4 and make a donation.
   
   
3. Please specify which prize you'd like in the 'Personal Message' section in the donation form when confirming your donation. You must write-in how many tickets per prize, and please use the prize code.
   
   Each $10 you donate will give you one raffle ticket toward a prize of your choice. For example, a donation of $50 can be 2 tickets for EU01 and 3 tickets for EU02. Please write 2xEU01, 3xEU02.
   
   
4. If your company matches your charity donation, please check the box and fill in the information so we can claim the corporate match.
   
   
5. Please check the box to allow us to see your email address so that we can contact you in case you win. Your email address will not be shared with anyone.

Check back on Chez Pim on Wednesday Jaunary 9 for the results of the raffle.

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