National Culinary Review

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

By Michael Ty, CEC, AAC
I’ve been an ACF member since late 1981/ early 1982, when I joined my local ACF chapter. What did ACF mean to me? Why did I want to join? The reasons are numerous, and I would like to share with you how important it is not only to be a member of ACF, but to join an organization that supports your profession.

Many ask, why should I join ACF and what can ACF do for me. This, I believe, is the wrong approach. Instead, we should be asking, what can we contribute, and how can we improve on making ACF the premier chefs organization.

ACF has given me the opportunity to network with my fellow culinarians. This sounds simple, but it is the most important aspect of being a member of any organization. When the culture of our chapter changed with the evolution of open membership, it grew and diversified with the inclusion of chefs in all areas of the culinary arts. This gave all of us more networking opportunities.

Our profession has also changed in the last

30 years, and so has our ACF membership as a whole. The public perception of “chef” used to be a person who worked in a restaurant, hotel, country club or prestigious dining facility.

Today, there are numerous opportunities for chefs in foodservice: supermarkets, healthcare, colleges/universities, corporations and schools, to name a few. And that brings

a richness of experience in all areas of our profession into our local chapters and ACF.

One of the most rewarding reasons to belong to ACF is the opportunity to share knowledge. When I first joined, I was impressed with the wealth of knowledge that chefs in the local community shared and the help they so willingly gave each other. Sharing recipes and best practices brought prominence to not only our chapter but to the city where we lived and worked.

Another huge benefit of being a member was the opportunity for us to get together and be part of the local community. Branding has always been important to any organization, but community involvement allowed us to promote our craft by giving back. There was also a bonus for us as chefs. Being part of a charitable event organized by our ACF chapter gave us prestige, and also the opportunity to promote our food operations and build on our guest base. It gave us the best of both worlds when it came to networking within our local community.

But despite all the above, there is a truly compelling reason to join ACF that is vital to the future of our profession: the

George Wong, CCC, left, executive chef, Chop Stix, Brooklyn, N. Y., and Michael Ty at the Asian Food “Feastival” held at the Sheraton LaGuardia East Hotel, Queens, N. Y., Sept. 6.

nurturing of the next generation of cooks and chefs. Back when I was in culinary school, there was only a handful of culinary programs across the U.S. Today, there are more than 700 culinary programs offering education in culinary arts. This means that thousands of students graduate from culinary arts programs each year, and they need our help. This is where we can contribute to the future of our profession— by mentoring them during their early years.

Michael Ty met with staff at the Indianapolis Marriott Hotel Aug. 31: front row, left to right, Shannon Mitchell, Maria Hernandez, Maria Ramirez, Maria Ortega, Imelda Hernandez, Raul Magollanes, Amber Naqvi, Thomas Mah, Roderick White and William Price II; back row, left to right, Robert Drake, Salvatore Serrito, Charles Fox, Ty and Michael Vlasich CEC, AAC, the hotel’s executive chef.

I am hopeful that in the near future we will have a mentorship program to share with you. It will be a model that every chapter can use in its local community, and in some instances, beyond. We’ve been talking about such a program for many years, but now is the time for us to implement a viable model that will help us build our membership for the future.