LeBonAppetit, presented by Le Bonheur Club, is a charity event benefiting Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, the regions only comprehensive pediatric medical facility. Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital treats more than 130,000 children annually and is ranked as one of the nation’s "Best Children’s Hospital" by U.S. News & World Report.  Your support will enable us to complete our $1 million dollar commitment to the Le Bonheur Child Life Endowment, a clinical program that is vitally important to reducing the trauma for children and families coping with the stress of a hospital stay.
 

Children Need More than Medicine to Get Well

Because we recognize that children need more than medicine to get well, Certified Child Life specialists assist children and families by planning individualized and group programs that utilize pre-operative teaching, medical play, distraction/diversion, normalization, infant stimulation and many other family-centered initiatives.

Child Life also provides ample social opportunities through special events and visitors, play rooms, the creative arts room, teen room, sedatives and pain medication. Because Le Bonheur believes in caring for the whole family, Child Life also works with siblings and other family members affected by a child’s illness or trauma. Overall, Child Life specialists promote physical and mental activities that are an essential part of the healing process. Your support will help ensure the continued success of this critically important clinical program.

 

Cuisine for a Cause

This extraordinary celebration of food and wine will be the most prestigious gourmet benefit in Memphis. On June 30, 2012, patrons will gather at the historic Columns to sample the finest delicacies prepared by 20 chefs from across the United states. To complement the chefs’ cuisine, and premium wines selected to compliment each dish will be featured at the event.

Guests will also have an opportunity to bid on fantastic one-of-a-kind items, many provided by the chefs themselves, in the silent auction and enjoy freshly rolled cigars in the Cigar Garden as well as a bourbon tasting held in the Columns’ stately Vault. Entertainment will be provided by one of the region’s finest vocalists and nationally renowned artist Susan Marshall.

 

 

 

Honorary Chairs

Johnny and Kim Pitts have been selected as Honorary Chairs for this inaugural event because of their selfless hours of dedication to the fulfillment of the mission of Le Bonheur Children's Hospital, as well as their keen sense of responsibility to the Memphis community at large as well as the great state of Tennessee. 

Both Johnny and Kim are active civic and professional leaders, and serve in many official and unofficial capacities for the city of Memphis.  Along with his partner Matt Lipscomb III, Johnny is a majority owner and chief manager of Lipscomb and Pitts Insurance, LLC, the largest privately owned insurance companies in the Greater Memphis area and one of the top 200 insurance companies in the United States.

  

As an Eagle Scout, Johnny remains very involved in scouting, is an active alumnus of Memphis University School, is a former chairman of the Board of Youth Villages, current Deacon of Independent Presbyterian Church and is also past chairman of the Greenwich Group, an insurance broker network.  He serves this year as chairman of the annual fundraiser for The Salvation Army. 

 

Kim is the Immediate Past President of LeBonheur Club yet remains extremely active in all phases of the organization, serves on the Le Bonheur Hospital Foundation board, continues to be active with the Junior League of Memphis serving on the Sustainer Council Board and active with the Garden Club. Kim is the West TN appointed representative to Governor Haslam’s TN Executive Residence Foundation Board and Chaired this year’s First Lady of TN’s Luncheon held in Nashville, TN. 

Johnny and Kim have been married for 26 years and have a son Rob as well as two daughters, Jennings and Mary Carson. 

 
 

Chef Chair

A James Beard Award Semifinalist for Best Chef: Southeast, Chef Kelly English is inspired by the familiar flavors from his childhood in southern Louisiana and incorporates that inspiration into each dish he cooks. English currently implements this inspiration for food and service in his premier restaurant, Restaurant Iris in Memphis, Tennessee, and at Kelly English Steakhouse at Harrah’s St. Louis Casino and Hotel in St. Louis, Missouri.
 

Food & Wine Magazine named English one of the “Best New Chefs for 2009”. In 2010 English appeared on the Food Network’s “The Best Thing I Ever Ate,” and earned the Memphis Restaurant Association’s “Restaurateur of the Year” award. English has been featured in the popular cooking magazines Everyday with Rachel Ray and Bon Appétit, the cookbook Wild Abundance, and has cooked alongside Wolfgang Puck at the American Wine and Food Festival. English also serves on the Founder’s Council for the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival.

 

Restaurant Iris, a charming French-Creole restaurant near the historic Overton Square of midtown Memphis, has taken the Memphis dining scene by storm. Among its many accolades, Restaurant Iris has received a four-star review from the Commercial Appeal and was voted Memphis’ “Best Restaurant” and “Best Chef” three years in a row, and “Best Service” four years in a row by Memphis magazine readers. In 2011, 2010 and 2009, Memphis Flyer readers voted English and Restaurant Iris “Best Restaurant” and “Best Chef.” Restaurant Iris was named “Editors Choice: Best Restaurant” by At Home Tennessee, “Best Bet Outside of Louisiana” by Louisiana Life Magazine, and “Hot New Restaurant” by Delta Magazine.

At Kelly English Steakhouse, Chef English redefines traditional steakhouse fare by infusing his French-Creole style into all his dishes, reinventing old favorites and introducing new ones. The steakhouse continues his commitment from Restaurant Iris to use fresh and local ingredients whenever possible on all menu items.