YWCA Cortland Preview Upcoming Annual Chefs Take a Stand Against Domestic Violence

Mike Eves: Good morning, it’s Mike Eves right here on X101, always classic, another edition of Meet Cortland County. And this is a special one, of course. I’ve been taking part in it here the last few years. Chefs Take a Stand Against Domestic Violence, great thing that happens with the YWCA of Cortland. Of course, they’re raising tons of money. In the studio is Jessica Smith, she’s the coordinator over at the YWCA, and we also have Alyssa Wheeler, she’s also the assistant marketing person over there. Jessica, Alyssa, welcome to the studio. I can’t believe it’s almost, literally my favorite time of the year. I love fall, but fall means Chefs Take a Stand out at Greek Peak. Alyssa, we’ll start with you. Want to welcome you to the studio. So what day Chefs Take a Stand, what’s some of the important stuff we need to know here?

Alyssa Wheeler: Yeah, this year, Chefs Take a Stand takes place on Wednesday, October 7th. It’s at The Lookout at Hope Lake from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. This is our fifth year out there. It’s an amazing venue. Sometimes it can be hard to find, but once you’re there, it’s perfect.

Mike Eves: Yeah, that’s right. We were talking off air, it’s awesome. They can open up the garage doors and things up there. And really awesome to see you guys in the fall and stuff, awesome with… and Greek Peak is great. You guys have had a great relationship with them as well. Jessica, of course, the Chefs Take a Stand Against Domestic Violence, such an important thing and, you know, money raised, of course, goes to help the Aid to Victims of Violence program. You want to get into that a little bit here, too?

Jessica Smith: Absolutely. Aid to Victims of Violence is primarily funded by grant funding, but grant funds don’t cover every need that a victim has. These funds that we raise here help to supplement some of those needs. Sometimes it’s just somebody needs a haircut for their first day of school maybe, they need a haircut for a job interview, they need assistance paying for medications that they had to leave behind when they had to leave a domestic violence situation. So these funds are very critical to meeting some of those essential needs that the individuals we serve really have.

Mike Eves: Yeah, yeah, that’s right. And it’s such a fun, fun, fun fundraiser to have, too, for such a great cause. I know lots of community leaders come. I know it’s sold out the past couple years, right, Alyssa? So let me get into that a little bit about how it actually, how it works. So you guys just invite me included as one of the chefs, but who are some of the other chefs if you want to share that with us here?

Alyssa Wheeler: Yeah, so this year we have a lot of exciting things happening with our chefs. We always have a chef from Greek Peak, Guthrie Medical Center will have a chef from there, and then a lot of our participants are also various community leaders, such as Cortland Police Department, SUNY Cortland, JM Murray, Center for the Arts of Homer, and more. A lot of those community leaders come out and show their support.

Mike Eves: Yeah, no, that’s awesome. And there’s some different categories, right? Tell me a little bit how that works, and there’s some professional chefs we’re up against, too, right? And some of the, some of the home—not, I almost said the word amateur chefs. We like to call ourselves home chefs.

Alyssa Wheeler: Yes, sir. Yes, exactly. So, as a participant coming out to Greek Peak, you’ll purchase a ticket for $50 each. That $50 helps you come into the event, but it also goes towards the fundraiser itself. As a participant, you will then vote for best pro, best home, and then there are categories within those supplemental categories.

Mike Eves: Yep, yeah, so right, we’ve got appetizer, right? We’ve got entree, and I’m going to be doing dessert category as well, see if I’m going to win. And then you guys, we’ve always had, and Travel Revival’s been with you for a few years. They’re awesome to hear that with Mark Ryan and stuff, too, playing that, and obviously amazing food. So when you go in there, right, how does it work? Does everyone kind of get a little bit of a sample?

Alyssa Wheeler: Yeah, so it’s pretty much a free-for-all. It’s whatever you’d like to do. So all of the chefs will have a little table tent that explains their food as well as in the program. If you don’t like it, you don’t have to bite it, and that’s fine. But then you can go wherever. The desserts, appetizers, and entrees will be mixed around. We also have drinks provided by Homer Hops and Tree Eleven Wineries.

Mike Eves: Oh yeah, I was going to say that. And new this year, too, and you guys have teamed up with Cortland Prevention Resources, another great non-profit here locally. Alyssa, tell me a little bit about that. What are you guys going to introduce with them?

Alyssa Wheeler: We’re going to introduce this year mocktails. ATI is also going to be there, Access to Independence. They will also be doing a mocktail. There’s such an important tie between domestic violence and alcohol, so we really wanted the chance to showcase safer options, especially at such an important event. So if you are someone who doesn’t consume alcohol, we’ll also have options for you there.

Mike Eves: Awesome. No, yeah, no, that’s right. That’s a good point. And plus, you know, just because, you know, some of these drinks, in my opinion, taste actually way better as well. We’re almost out of time here, but Jessica, anything else you want to say before we wrap it up? Obviously, it’s one of you guys’s biggest fundraisers for the Aid to Victims of Violence, right?

Jessica Smith: Yes, October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, so this is a great time for you to come out and show your support for victims in the community, try to reduce some of that stigma that is out there about victims. Men and women can both be victims of domestic violence, but knowing that people out there are a support for people and aren’t victim-blaming, you know, just being out there and present in events like this helps other people to see safe options for them to go and talk about some of these things. And it helps you to be more knowledgeable as well to be able to point people in the right direction when they need help.

Mike Eves: Yeah, yeah, no, that’s right. It kind of gives them maybe a little bit of confidence in, hey, you know, the community is supporting what I’ve gone through, which is pretty awesome. Of course, proceeds benefit the Aid to Victims of Violence program and help survivors in our community. Alyssa, anything else you want to say before things wrap up? Obviously, Chefs Take a Stand, Wednesday, October 7th out at Greek Peak, 6:00 to 8:00.

Alyssa Wheeler: Yeah, we got some exciting new things this year with the mocktails. We’re also introducing a silent auction this year. So check out all of the new updates at cortlandywca.org and our social media pages.

Mike Eves: Perfect. And now, so if I want to get tickets, where can I go to get tickets? It’s the same website as well?

Alyssa Wheeler: cortlandywca.org, and then if you go to the Events tab, you’ll find Chefs, and there’s a huge “Get Tickets” button.

Mike Eves: Awesome, perfect. Jessica Smith, Alyssa Wheeler, I do want to thank both of you ladies for joining us this morning on Meet Cortland County.

Alyssa Wheeler: Awesome, thank you so much.

Jessica Smith: Thank you.