Farm-to-Table dinner brings community together to support area youth

By Karen Owens
Publisher

Teach Feed Succeed isn’t just a motto—it’s a passion for supporters of Carolina Human Reinvestment of South Carolina (CHRSC), a Pawleys Island-based nonprofit committed to healthy communities. Local restaurateurs, farmers, businesspeople and educators are helping the organization expand access to fresh fruits and vegetables, build knowledge about them and encourage their consumption through community-led food distribution projects across the state.

That work takes initiative, learning and dedication—and, like most nonprofit efforts, the generosity of the community. As I watched preparations for the fourth annual Farm-to-Table dinner last Sunday evening, that support was taking shape at the organization’s Community Garden on Petigru Drive. The outdoor space, where children and adults tend crops throughout the year, was being transformed into an elegant dining setting. Fine linens and fresh flowers dressed the tables, and strings of lights added a festive touch for the 128 ticket holders supporting the cause.

Chef Adam Kirby with business partner Anne Hardy.

The evening’s five-course menu was curated by local chef Adam Kirby and his business partner, Anne Hardy, of Bistro 217 and Rustic Table. It featured herbs and vegetables from the community garden, along with ingredients sourced from Kirby’s Lake Swamp Farm and Blackwell Mill. The courses included yellow summer squash soup; a garden green salad with sweet potatoes, red onions, tomatoes, walnuts and roasted halloumi cheese, dressed with sesame tahini vinaigrette; shrimp gumbo over a fried grit cake; cornmeal-crusted grouper over pea succotash, finished with roasted poblano and blue crab beurre blanc; and blueberry cobbler with lavender ice cream and a honey drizzle.

“We try to do as much charity work as we can throughout the community, and I’m a big believer in any sort of charity for the kids. That’s our lifeline for the future,” Kirby told me.

Craft cocktails, wine and entertainment by the Doc Simmons Band rounded out the evening’s plans. Generously donated live and silent auction items offered guests more ways to support the organization. The silent auction featured gift baskets, golf outings and trips to destinations ranging from Columbia, South Carolina, to Prince Edward Island. The live auction included dream vacations to Tuscany and Iceland.

CHRSC Board members Kathy Besse, Buffy Patterson and Leigh Hope.

The dinner was the brainchild of board member Buffy Patterson, the local entrepreneur behind Sage & Salvage/Whisky Moon Café, and it has grown bigger each year. As board volunteers put the finishing touches on the setup, Patterson reflected on the support that makes it possible. “It’s amazing to see how the community supports this event, and Adam Kirby and Anne Hardy have been instrumental in making this a wonderful experience,” she explained. “And the weather is just perfect to have this outdoors, so we can all enjoy the beauty of the garden.”

Executive Director Gianny Guedjo echoed her enthusiasm, crediting the board and event planning committee for their passion and unwavering commitment to raising funds for the organization’s programs.

Event organizers reported that the dinner met its $100,000 fundraising goal. Those funds will support the Community Garden, Foodshare Georgetown County, Carolina Kids Afterschool and Summer programs, the Carolina Kids Farm to School initiative, and the Carolina Kids Summer Intern program—a reminder of the work behind the festive setting I saw coming together.