Fort Harrison Chefs Among those Honored at the American Culinary Federation Team Fundraiser

CLEARWATER, Fla., May 04, 2018 -- On Saturday the 28th of April, at a dinner organized by the American Culinary Federation (ACF) Tampa Bay Chapter President Chef Rene Marquis which was held in the Crystal Ballroom of the Fort Harrison, three chefs of the Church of Scientology’s Fort Harrison in downtown Clearwater, were inducted into the Chaine des Rotissuer, the largest professional culinary organization in North America. The dinner and awards ceremony was attended by over 150 top chefs and restaurant owners and executives. At the same time, ACF raised over $257,000 for their Team USA to attend the Culinary World Cup in the fall and the Culinary Olympics in 2020. The event was the first ever collaboration between the Chaine des Rotissuer and ACF, which is the progeny of the combined visions of three chefs' associations in New York City and comprises more than 22,000 members in 230 chapters across the United States.

Photo Caption (left to right): Tanja Gray, Food and Beverage manager Fort Harrison; Chef Rene Marquis, ACF Tampa Bay Chapter President; Chef Vanessa Marquis, ACF Tampa Bay Chapter Secretary, Chef Barry Reid, Executive Chef Fort Harrison; Chef Stafford DeCambra, ACF National President; Chef Reimund Pitz, ACF Olympic Team Captain; Chef Zoltan Vajna, Executive Chef Church of Scientology; and Chef Michael Thrash at the Church of Scientology’s Fort Harrison Ballroom April 28th.

Before the dinner began, twelve individuals were inducted into the Chaine des Rotissuer, an invitation only organization, for their professionalism in the field of culinary arts. The three Fort Harrison staff inducted were: Tanja Gray, the Food & Beverage Manager; Barry Reid, the Executive Chef; and Luca Biancolini, the Hibiscus Restaurant Manager. The Church of Scientology’s Executive Chef, Zoltan Vajna, was also given a special acknowledgement.

In accepting his acknowledgement, a bronze star, Chef Vajna said, “It is our honor to serve you at our Church’s community events in recognition of the joy that good food brings to people’s lives.”

Fort Harrison Chef, 23-year-old Kevin Maier, who was awarded a Gold Medal in the 2016 & 2017 National Young Chef competition and came 4^th in the world, was also invited to join ACF’s US Olympic team.

The Fort Harrison Religious Retreat:

Since its construction in 1927, the Fort Harrison in Downtown Clearwater has been the home for many community events and charitable organizations. The Fort Harrison’s current owner, the Church of Scientology, has hosted over 500 community events there since a top-to-bottom restoration in 2009. The Scientology religion was founded by humanitarian and philosopher, L. Ron Hubbard, and incorporated in 1954. To learn more, visit www.scientology.org. and www.scientology.tv

For more information
Contact: Pat Harney
727-467-6860

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://resource.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/002ed554-1edf-4cc3-a51c-29bef31d5f44