Anastasia Vlasova and Helen Tsanos Sheinman
Photo by Lisa Tamburini
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
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South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery Receives Slow Food East End’s Snail Of Approval At Cocktails With A Cause Fundraising Event
South Fork Bakery held its fourth annual Cocktails with a Cause and received its Snail of Approval recognition from Slow Food East End on Saturday, November 15, at Tutto il Giorno in Sag Harbor.
Based in Sag Harbor and Amagansett, South Fork Bakery is a nonprofit bakery and employment training center offering paid work, coaching, and community placement opportunities for adults with disabilities. The launch program prepares participants for greater independence and employment readiness while producing baked goods enjoyed across the region.
This year’s event featured a special presentation by Slow Food East End, highlighting South Fork Bakery’s efforts and its alignment with Slow Food’s principles of good, clean, and fair food. Slow Food East End is a local chapter of the global Slow Food movement, which supports sustainable agriculture, local food producers, and equitable access to food.
Bridget Fleming, the executive director of South Fork Bakery, greeted guests at the sold-out event and introduced the speakers and board members.
Robby Stein, the president of the SFB Board of Trustees, began. “It’s really important for you to understand what you’re a part of, not only the community, but the support of community,” he said.
Landscape architect and longtime supporter Ed Hollander described how South Fork Bakery had helped his daughter, Ren Hollander, who works at the bakery, its farmers’ market tent, and is also a board member. “She started there and found work and found companionship and found friendship and learned abilities and talents… Every person that’s in this room who has a child wants one thing, and that is for that kid to love themselves.”
“South Fork Bakery helped her to do that and helped her to learn who she was and how to value who she was,” he continued.
Slow Food East End was represented by Maria McBride, president, and Ralph Reinertsen, chair of the awards committee, who made a special presentation.
Reinertsen said of the organization, “It started in Italy in 1983. A man was walking by the Spanish Steps and saw a McDonald’s being made and said to his friend ‘Oh no, we don’t eat fast food, we eat slow food.’”
“We are giving this award because when we interviewed, we saw the love, the respect, the honesty, the ideals,” he continued. “I guess the best way to sum it up is, we feel more honored that you accept our award than we do giving the award. This is the first bakery ever awarded a snail.”
McBride then presented South Fork Bakery with the Snail of Approval as the first bakery on the East End to receive the distinction from the group.
Laura Miller, the daughter of South Fork Bakery founder Shirley Ruch, also spoke, paying tribute to her mother’s work.
“My mom always makes things extra special. South Fork Bakery exists because of her courage, her belief, and her gift for seeing everyone’s full potential,” said Miller.
“It’s more than just a bakery. It’s confidence, it’s community, independence, and joy. People who could have easily been left out and overlooked in this community are instead benefiting from meaningful work,” she continued.
Board members also in attendance included Jane Millard, Liz Ilgenfritz, Roy Cohen, Helen Tsanos Sheinman, Rose Dios, Michele Cohen, and Ann Sutphen.
Guests at the event enjoyed light bites, cocktails, a curated silent auction, and an informational video highlighting South Fork Bakery’s expanding launch training program.
