Cooks Tour to Benefit Patients at UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute

By Susan Van Dusen

The tour of homes is scheduled for 1-4 p.m. April 17 in The Arbors and The Oaks neighborhoods of Little Rock’s Chenal Valley. Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 at the door and may be purchased online at www.cancer.uams.edu/cookstour or by calling (501) 686-8286.

The event will feature tours of the homes of Melissa and Dr. John Hampton; Tina and Robert Head; Evelyn and Dr. Jerry Thomas; and Brenda and Harry Herget. In each home, executive chefs from some of Little Rock’s finest restaurants will prepare their signature dishes for tour participants to sample.

The chefs for this year’s tour are Mark Abernathy of Loca Luna and Red Door restaurants; John Beachboard and Scott McGehee of ZaZa Fine Salad and Wood Oven Pizza Co.; Evette Brady and Timothy Morton of 1620 Restaurant; and Dan Capello of Chenal Country Club.

The Cancer Institute Auxiliary’s Distinguished Honoree Award, given annually in conjunction with Cooks Tour, will be presented to Cancer Institute Director Peter Emanuel, M.D., at the Patrons’ Cocktail Buffet from 7-9:30 p.m. April 15 at the home of Tracy and Pete Yuan. The event is hosted by the Yuans and UAMS Chancellor Dan Rahn, M.D., and his wife, Lana.

Tickets for the cocktail buffet are $125 per person and include a ticket to the Cooks Tour of Homes. Tickets may be purchased online at www.cancer.uams.edu/cookstour or by calling the Cancer Institute Department of Volunteer Services at (501) 686-8286.

In addition to leading the Cancer Institute through the construction of its 12-story expansion that opened in 2010, Emanuel also is internationally renowned for his bench-to-bedside research in both pediatric and adult forms of leukemia. He has served as Cancer Institute director since 2007.

The Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute Auxiliary Cooks Tour was founded 20 years ago with a two-fold purpose: to raise funds to support research, patient care and education at the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute and to increase public awareness of cancer prevention. The money raised by Cooks Tour 2011 will be used to fund projects that benefit cancer patients in Arkansas.

Chenal Properties, Inc. is the presenting sponsor. Beverage sponsor Glazer’s Distributors of Arkansas will provide beverages for the Friday evening Patrons’ Cocktail Buffet and wines for the Sunday tour of homes.

UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Related Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a 540,000-square-foot hospital; a statewide network of regional centers; and six institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, the Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy, the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the Psychiatric Research Institute and the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging. It is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 2,836 students and 761 medical residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including nearly 1,150 physicians who provide medical care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS’ Area Health Education Centers throughout the state. Visit www.uams.edu or uamshealth.com.