INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY DINNER RAISES $10,774 FOR FOUNDRY KELOWNA, KARIS SUPPORT SOCIETY & SLOW FOOD CANADA

The Paisley Notebook creator, Aman Dosanj is proud to announce that her recent International Women’s Day collaboration dinner on March 8 has generated a donation of $10,774.30 for Foundry Kelowna, KARIS Support Society and Slow Food Canada.

 

The special 5-course wine-paired dinner at Tantalus Vineyards united Chefs from British Columbia and Alberta with wine pairings from across the Okanagan. This year’s celebration included the culinary talents of Aman Dosanj (The Paisley Notebook, Kelowna), Leah Massey (Biera, Edmonton), Erin Pickering (Nicole Gourmet, Calgary), Jinhee Lee (Foreign Concept, Calgary) and Tina Tang (Predator Ridge, Vernon) with Winemakers David Paterson (Tantalus Vineyards), Pénélope Roche (Roche Wines), Jacqueline Kemp (Moraine Winery), Severine Pinte (Le Vieux Pin Winery), who showcased local ingredients from British Columbia and Alberta.

During the intimate dinner, Chefs, Winemakers and representatives from the charities stood in front of two communal long tables to share their personal experiences and connections to mental health. The extraordinary evening resulted in the second standing ovation for the annual dinner.

“What a wonderful event bringing a powerhouse of female talent together and showcasing what our valley has to offer, it was an honour to be a part of”, David Paterson, Tantalus Vineyards.

“This dinner isn’t just a dinner. After last year’s inaugural International Women’s Day collaboration, everyone involved saw how we could make a difference in our community and change lives. This dinner is about kindness, celebrating differences and being able to ask for help, and we did just that. To connect with your guests and peers so deeply; to see the excitement in people’s eyes as plates were set down, to tell stories and draw tears, for our Winemakers to help pour their peers’ wine, to watch the ladies in the kitchen support each other and have fun, and to receive another standing ovation is magical. Talented people deserve to be seen and I’m proud that The Paisley Notebook is my little platform to make that happen. We definitely felt warm and fuzzy inside and that feeling just keeps on growing”, says Aman Dosanj of The Paisley Notebook.

With 100% of proceeds (after operating costs) going to the three chosen charities, funds have been directed into culinary related areas. The idea is simple: to feed more than the 44 people served on March 8, 2018. Dosanj’s personal fundraising total has reached over $35,000 in 15 months. Planning for the third annual dinner on Friday, March 8, 2019 has already begun.

 

For more information on Aman Dosanj and The Paisley Notebook, see paisleynotebook.com.

 

About The Paisley Notebook

Aman Dosanj, the former Poppadoms co-owner and Western Living Magazine ‘Foodie of the Year’ 2015, has returned from an 8-month edible adventure, writing about how food connects us. Telling stories using food, Aman organizes pop up dinners and collaborative events across the Okanagan aimed at bringing the community together. The Paisley Notebook was recently a top 3 finalist at the BC Tourism Industry Conference Awards 2018 in the ‘Remarkable Experience’ category. For more information, check out paisleynotebook.com.

 

About Foundry Kelowna

Foundry Kelowna is an integrated youth and family clinic that unites partner organizations to provide coordinated services addressing the primary care, mental health, substance use, counselling and social service needs of youth
aged 12 – 24 and their families. Foundry Kelowna supports young peoples’ wellbeing by intervening early so youth can find the help they need, when they need it. The Canadian Mental Health Association, Kelowna and District Branch is the lead agency and operator of Foundry Kelowna. See cmhakelowna.org for more information.

About Slow Food Canada

Slow Food is a global grassroots organization that envisions a world in which all people can access and enjoy food that is good for them, good for those who grow it and good for the planet. Slow Food involves over a million activists, chefs, experts, youth, farmers, fishers and academics in over 160 countries. For more information, see slowfood.ca.

 

About KARIS Support Society

KARIS Support Society is a non-profit organization that provides recovery-focused counselling, programming and support to women, and women with babies or children within a supportive home environment.  Their participants are women whose experiences of trauma, abuse, crisis or overwhelming stress have led to substance abuse or mental health challenges which have negatively impacted their lives and they are now actively working on personal recovery.  For more information, see karis-society.org.