North Carolinians Support the Search for a Cure

May 19, 2009

Master Chefs cooked up a meal to impress this April at the Carolinas Chapter-Raleigh Office’s Evening with Master Chefs. More than 320 guests gathered for an evening of fine dining in the ballroom of the Carolina Club on the University of North Carolina campus to benefit the CF Foundation.

Master Chefs from local restaurants treated guests to "a culinary journey through Italy,” which consisted of a five-course meal paired with wines. The dinner and auctions featuring the work of local artisans, including one-of-a-kind ceramics, sculpture and hand-made jewelry, raised more than $83,000 to support the search for a cure.

8-year-old Wells Clark takes center stage during the evening's Bid for a Cure.

Now in its 13th year, the Evening with Master Chefs drew a multitude of guests, including those from area businesses, medical experts and researchers for the dinner and auctions.

Following dinner, guests perused auction items, including a range of pieces from hand-made jewelry to art and pottery. Especially popular with the North Carolina guests were pieces from Vietri pottery, the largest importer of handcrafted Italian pottery located in the area, signed by the founders themselves.

Artwork by 8-year-old Wells Clark, who has CF and is son of National Volunteer Leadership Initiative Co-Chairs Perry and Kelli Clark, raised more than $6,200, and two first-time Bid for a Cure donors generously contributed $5,000 each.

Honored guests

Drs. Scott Randell and Jim Yankaskas of the CF care center at UNC Chapel Hill co-chaired the event. Also among the guests were honorees from the research and medical communities of North Carolina’s own Duke University, University of North Carolina, and Wake Forrest University.

Special tribute was paid to area CF researchers and caregivers who were in attendance, and Honoree Dr. Charles A. Sanders reminded guests of the importance of the lifesaving science and medical programs backed by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Dr. Richard Boucher, director of the Cystic Fibrosis/Pulmonary Research & Treatment Center at the University of North Carolina, spoke about the significance of the CF Foundation’s efforts in North Carolina to improve and extend the lives of those with CF, as state-wide newborn screening for cystic fibrosis will commence this month.

Wells Clark spoke with confidence beyond his years about his hope for the future: “There is a cure, you know, we just haven’t found it yet,” he said.

Special thanks

Many thanks to the following volunteers for making the event a success: