Guest blog post by Vanessa Ronquillo, Emerging Leaders 365 donor and committee co-chair; Content Strategist for VOGLIO Marketing.

When you combine people who care about the community with food and philanthropy, you know you have a recipe for success.

United Way Emerging Leaders 365 closed down Tavolàta’s Cap Hill location for our fourth Seattle Chef’s Table event last week. It was an engaging, educational, and meaningful night as we connected over delicious food and got to mingle with Executive Chef Ethan Stowell himself. The best part? We were able to raise $10,416 towards fighting homelessness in Seattle.

Homelessness is a critical issue in Seattle that we need to confront. I love that United Way of King County always has a plan and continuously tackles these issues at the root. Their results-driven programs help break the cycle of poverty at every level. Their newest program, Home Base is a perfect example of taking action at the root cause.

What is Home Base?

Home Base is a program to prevent evictions, fighting homelessness before it starts. Thanks to support from the Seattle Mariners and Microsoft, United Way is able to prevent more people from falling into homelessness by providing one-time emergency funds to pay rent, help from social services to develop a plan, and legal representation to help with the eviction process. So far, the program has prevented over 400 households from eviction and provided over 1,000 households with legal assistance.

Seattle Chef’s Table events with Chef Ethan Stowell

“There are restaurants in your community that are making a difference and investing back in your community. These are the ones you need to invest in and go support,” – Ethan Stowell.

Executive Chef Ethan Stowell sets the example of what it means to invest back in a community that has supported him. The growing number of people experiencing homelessness has been an issue that matters to him and he took the time to meet and discuss with all the young professionals that attended. Thank you Chef Ethan Stowell, Tavolàta is my favorite restaurant in Seattle!

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