Local chefs come together to help cancer patients with their living expenses

Chefs across the valley are coming together for a good cause in Rancho Mirage. The Pendleton Foundation will be hosting its 12th annual Chef’s Auction Thursday night at the Ritz Carlton.

The day before is crunch time for chefs Herve Glin and Bruno Lopez. The auction was the brainchild of Chef Glin.

“When you look at the people you help every year, you say OK, great great year. And to see the support we have year after year, it’s so nice,” said Glin, the executive chef at Parker Palm Springs.

The money raised from auctioning off some of the valley’s top chefs all going to the foundation.

“The Pendleton Foundation helps local cancer patients with food, gas, utilities and rent while they’re in treatment here in the Coachella Valley,” said Sean Roberts, the president of the Pendleton Foundation.

The foundation helps take away the stress of bills from people who are fighting to stay alive.

“We average about 250 families a year, so each family is allotted about $1,000 and they get food cards, gas cards. We pay the rent to the landlord and we pay the utilities to the utility company,” Roberts said.

Thursday’s menu will be featuring some local products.

“Nice tomato from the valley, some pig terrine for second appetizer, and for the appetizer we will have salmon and scallop,” said Chef Lopez, the executive chef at the Ritz Carlton Rancho Mirage.

The highlight of the evening: 13 chefs will be auctioned off. The winning bids get a private dinner for eight cooked at their home or the chef’s restaurant. Some healthy competition between the chefs auctioned off.

“Cooking at home, it’s quite a bit of fun and the auction is always a different chef and you have this fun battle going on,” Lopez said.

Each chef hoping to add the right ingredients to eventually cook up a cure.