One of my passions is supporting the Calgary Food Community. Whenever I can jump on board to support a cause I am there. I’ve enjoyed working within the food community over the years either volunteering, organizing/assuming events, managing or start a new one. Read on below to see what I’ve been up to the last six years.
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YYC Burger Week
2014 – I joined founder Sabahat and the YYC Burger Week team to help plan what would become an annual burger event supporting local businesses and charity. Together our large team helped increase the total amount of $7,000 raised for charity in 2013, to almost $25,000 raised for charity in 2014.
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YYC Pizza Week 2014-2018
Started YYC Pizza Week in 2014. With the help of over 40 restaurants and a team of dedicated volunteers, we raised close to $10,000 for Calgary Meals on Wheels in our first year.
In 2015 YYC Pizza Week The Sequel returned and we put together a strong team of volunteers raising close to $10,000 for Calgary Meals on Wheels.
2016, A Triple Threat saw us expanding on our management team again to bring in more expertise. We led an amazing team of volunteers and created more buzz in the community. We are looking forward to new ideas and a fantastic YYC Pizza Week returning to the Calgary Community in September 2016.
2017 had us tapping into many connections and friends in the community and due to this the team grew yet again while we saw some members leave. New ideas, fresh perspectives and new local pizza making destinations came on board for another successful event.
2018 was a transition year and I decided to step down from YYC Pizza Week, offering it to the charity we started the event with, Calgary Meals on Wheels. They successfully executed YYC Pizza week 2018 and will continue to carry on this highly anticipated annual Calgary event.
In 2018 Calgary Meals on Wheels created The Baker Award in my honour to recognize community spirit during YYC Pizza Week.
As founder of this event I am pleased to announce in four years of having this event in Calgary (2014-2017), supporting local business and charity, we witnessed 11,097 pizzas consumed and over $35,000 dollars raised for charity.
YYC Pizza Week 2016 to raise funds for Calgary Meals on Wheels via Gerry Forbes at the Calgary Sun
YYC Pizza Week 2018 – The Torch Has Been Passed
2015 Culinaire Food Treasure Hunt
In 2012 we participated in a Calgary Foodie Treasure Hunt. We raced all over Calgary, participating in a challenge at every stop with prizes handed out at the end. The organizer became ill and was not able to carry on planning this event.
2013-2014 We did a case study and crowdsourcing the community determined a new race would be welcomed by the foodies of Calgary and local businesses looking for support. The feedback was positive so we started planning the next race.
2015 – Following a discussion with Culinaire Magazine, they decided to step forward advising their intent to work with us on the race. We agreed and started planning the first ever Culinaire Treasure Hunt in a similar format to the one I had run, ensuring businesses were highlighted and participants had a fun time. It was very successful and the next year I started the Culinary Race.
In 2016 I formed new partnerships within the food community and together we created the Culinary Race. Working with City Palate (folded September 2019), Yelp Calgary, Calgary Farmers Market and the Italian Centre, we had 100 teams registered (a sell out) and over 50 participating food destinations involved in our inaugural year as the Culinary Race. We included great bonus clues both leading up to and during the race and brought on the Calgary Food Bank as our Charity of choice. The bonus clues involved four well known Calgary food personalities who would move around a community with the hopes of being discovered by participants for extra points. A smashing success.
2017: We partnered with Eight Ounce Coffee to launch and finish the race. The Calgary Food Bank joined on as a charity adding bonus points if food bank donations were brought to registration. Bonus clues this year included revolving food trucks encouraging racers to follow them on social media to discover their location. This race also saw 100 teams and was a sell out.that included some key sponsors.
With so much going on in 2018, we put the race on hiatus.
Calgary Food Bloggers Bake Sale
2014 – Exactly as the name ensues, this bake sale was started and founded by Vincci Tsui. When she was ready to hand over the torch, I took it on, partnering with the Calgary Farmers Market and Brown Bagging for Calgary’s kids. We ran the event for one year and after much consideration and many demands in other areas, we put the bake sale on hold.
Culinary Race 2016-2018
2016: Working with City Palate (folded September 2019), Yelp Calgary, Calgary Farmers Market and the Italian Centre, we had 100 teams registered (a sell out) and over 50 participating food destinations involved in our inaugural year as the Culinary Race. We included great bonus clues both leading up to and during the race and brought on the Calgary Food Bank as our Charity of choice. The bonus clues involved four well known Calgary food personalities who would move around a community with the hopes of being discovered by participants for extra points. A successful day concluded we followed up with participant survey’s and received great feedback.
2017: We partnered with Eight Ounce Coffee to both launch and finish the race. The Calgary Food Bank joined on as a charity adding bonus points if food bank donations were brought to registration. Bonus clues this year included revolving food trucks encouraging racers to follow them on social media to discover their location. This race also saw 100 teams and was a sell out.that included some key sponsors.
2018 has been a transition year for us. We continue to have several people reach out annually either wanting to work with us to start the race again or inquiring as to when it will come back. Stay tuned to see what the new year brings!
