For more information please contact Julie Ruel (269) 343-3724 or [email protected]
Still want to help us? Purchase or Donate
All March of Dimes Signature Chefs events will be held virtually this year. While we may not be together in person, we rely on your continued support to provide innovative programs and services for moms, moms-to-be and babies who may be at a greater risk of becoming sick and not receiving proper or equitable care.
The chefs, volunteers and guests who make up our Signature Chefs Events community are coming together in new, innovative ways to suport moms and babies this year.
We are following state mandated guidelines in response to COVID-19 and will not have an in-person event this year. So, we are preparing an exciting, new Virtual Gala for your 2020 March of Dimes Signature Chefs Auction experience!
We need your help now more than ever. Your support funds:
Every year, 15 million babies are born prematurely worldwide, and 1 million will die before their first birthday. Your gift helps the March of Dimes fund research, education, advocacy and programs that help more moms have full-term pregnancies and healthy babies.
Join us for our annual gathering of the area's finest culinary talent in support of the March of Dimes on Thursday, October 19, 2017, at the Radisson Plaza Hotel. From your arrival at the event you will enjoy the chance to taste from the chefs' creations for a 90-miinute tasting experience before taking your seats for the Live Auction and Fund the Mission. Enjoy dessert while you bid on unique packages and raise your paddle and give generously to save babies.
Each year we highlight one famlies story who has been touch by the Mission of the March of Dimes. This year we are pleased to tell the Cameron family's story. Read the Cameron Family's story.
Every year more than 15 million babies are born prematurely; a million will die before their first birthday as a result. With your gift at Signature Chefs to the March of Dimes, you can help fund the research, education and support to ensure more babies celebrate their birthdays. Donations at some levels of giving will be matched the night of the event. Your Fund the Mission Donation of $750 will be matched by Priority Health Your Fund the Mission Donation of $250 will be matched by Devon Title *If your company would like to be a corporate matching gift partner, please call Jule Ruel at (269) 743-3724 or email at [email protected]
Together we can give them tomorrow Premature birth is the most serious infant health problem in the United States today. It is, in fact, the #1 killer of babies. It affects more than half a million babies nationwide each year, with over 15,000 in Michigan alone. The U.S. preterm birth rate is still too high at 9.6 percent—higher than that of most developed nations—while Michigan’s preterm birth rate is even higher at 9.9 percent. Premature birth costs society more than $26 billion a year. Babies born just a few weeks early are at risk of severe health problems and lifelong disabilities, taking an extreme toll on families emotionally and financially. In 2016, the March of Dimes granted $1.3 million for programs, research and services in Michigan. The funds provide prenatal education for doctors and nurses at community hospitals.
March of Dimes Michigan has heavily invested in group prenatal care with our partners across the state. This innovative approach to prenatal care has produced significant improvement in not only babies being born at term, but also Mom and baby thrive in bonding, increased breastfeeding, and healthy weight gain and brain development.
March of Dimes is strategically fund programs that promote health equity among different racial/ethnic groups. African American babies are two times more likely to be born premature more than their Caucasian counterparts. Michigan funds programs that address social determinates of health to increase the rate of African American babies born full term.
Leading preventable causes of premature birth in Michigan include; tobacco use during pregnancy, lack of health education and good health status prior to pregnancy as well as lack of access to proven interventions for women with prior preterm birth such as progesterone (17P) shots.
Michigan Investment goals 1. Decrease Smoking during pregnancy 2. Increase the use of 17P in indicated pregancies through reducing barriers, cost and insurance limitations 3. Encourage, through education, Mom's to space births 18 months apart
Signature Chefs events feature local culinary talent who create a selection of fine cuisine for an exclusive audience. Our chefs are artists, innovators and philanthropists, and we look forward to sharing their talents at the event.
Chef Erica Riste
Chef Joe Coudron
Chef Jason Schrock
Chef Tom Rose
Chef Luis Aljona
Chef Russ Barrett
Chef John Stovall
Chef Alec Durocher
Chef Matthew Pietsch
Chef Chris Kidd
Chef Nathan Dolley
Chef James Allen
Chef Stefan Johnson
Chef Amy Spalsbury
Thanks to the leadership of our volunteer chairs and committee members, we are honored to present this Signature Chefs event. After months of hard work, these volunteers have taken the event to new heights. The March of Dimes and the families we support are grateful for the generosity and effort of the team that made this evening possible.
Executive Event Chair
Culinary Chair
Logistics Chair
Auction Chair
Fund the Mission Chair
Revenue Leader
View our updated event acknowledgements and waivers here.
