The “Leading from the Heart Awards recognizes women within our New Orleans restaurant, bar, and hospitality community that have shown exceptional leadership in their work. Honoring women for their work already being done enables them the opportunity to potentially reinvest these funds into even more positive outcomes - for our community.
ABOUT OUR 2024 WINNERS
SINNIDRA TAYLOR/CODEYS NOLA & THUY PHAM/NOLA NITE MARKET RECEIVE
LES DAMES D’ESCOFFIER NEW ORLEANS LEADING FROM THE HEART AWARD GRANTS
Hospitality Philanthropists Will Each Receive $2500 Grants at Awards Breakfast on
Tuesday, February 27, 2024
IMAGES HERE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
New Orleans, LA: Les Dames d'Escoffier International (LDEI) New Orleans has just announced the two grant recipients for the Leading from the Heart Awards 2024. Recipients include Sinnidra Taylor, founder of Codey’s Nola commissary kitchen and incubator, and Thuy Pham, owner of Nola Nite Market – the bi-annual pop-up at the Westwego Farmers Market. Each of these women in hospitality will be awarded individual $2,500 grants.
In keeping with LDEI’s philanthropic mission, the awards honor women in the 10-parish Greater New Orleans community who have made a positive impact in hospitality, sustainability, food justice and/or public health. According to LDEI President Christa Cotton, "Supporting women and our community are the core tenets of our organization. We were thrilled with the overwhelming response to last year’s Leading From The Heart Awards and we’re excited to continue this initiative. I am especially pleased that last year’s recipients are passing the torch by presenting the awards to this year’s recipients in person, and I cannot wait to see how these women in our community use the funds to further their impact.”
“As we reviewed the outstanding nominees, it became evident that these two remarkable women have not only elevated themselves but have also emerged as trailblazers in our community,” said Dee Lavigne, LDEI Vice President of Philanthropy.
The grants will be presented at the Leading from the Heart Awards breakfast on Tuesday, February 27, 2024 from 9 AM – 11 AM at New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute (NOCHI), 725 Howard Avenue in New Orleans. The event is open to the public and tickets, priced at $45 per person, can be purchased at LDEI Leading from the Heart Awards Breakfast.
Sinnidra Taylor
Sinnidra is the founder of Codey's Nola, a non-profit commissary kitchen/incubator for up-and-coming New Orleans food entrepreneurs focused on access to affordable commercial kitchen space, technical assistance, and revenue-generating opportunities.
Thuy Pham (Individual Company)
Thuy is the owner of Nola Nite Market, a monthly market/food festival at the Westwego Farmers Market. Thuy designed the market to spotlight Asian food businesses in New Orleans, which are often overlooked in the ways media/marketing of "New Orleans cuisine" homogenize the New Orleans food experience. The market recognizes how cultural influences on New Orleans food have grown beyond the city's French or Italian food histories, and provides a space for Asian-American dishes to be considered part of New Orleans contemporary food experience.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Emily Vanlandingham, Vice President of Communications
communications@lesdamesnola.org
504.644.3933
About Les Dames d’Escoffier (LDEI): Stephanie Jane Carter, Beth D’Addono and Caroline Nabors founded the New Orleans chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier in 2017. LDEI is an international organization of women leaders who create a supportive culture in their communities to achieve excellence in the food, fine beverage, and hospitality professions. More than 2,400 members in 43 chapters provide leadership, educational opportunities and host philanthropic events within their communities. The Les Dames d’Escoffier organization takes its inspiration from Auguste Escoffier, a legendary chef and culinary innovator in his own time (1846-1935), as well as a philanthropist who marshaled his culinary resources and connections to do good things. It is believed that he was the first chef in the world to proactively enlist food and wine as fundraising vehicles. Stay up to date on LDEI NOLA happenings: Lesdamesnola.org; Facebook and Instagram.
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