Ability First Celebrates Fall with a Festival

More than 500 friends and supporters gathered Sunday afternoon at Ability First’s new Universal Studios Hollywood Discover a Star Park at its Lawrence L. Frank Center, for its annual Festival of Fall gourmet food and wine event, raising tens of thousands of dollars for the non-profit’s work with its physical and mentally challenged youths and adults.

The list of restaurants, businesses and contributors to the event read like a “who’s who” of Pasadena and The San Gabriel Valley, as dozens of restaurants offered tasting samples, and hundreds of business and prominent community leaders donated money, auction items, or good and services for the event.

Congresswoman Judy Chu, a longtime supporter of the event, presented the organizers with a Congressional recognition for the work, and NBC4 morning host Whit Johnson led a lively auction for gifts ranging from Grand Canyon adventures to Sonoma Wine Country vacations.

The event was chaired by Greg Wood, with committee members Cynthia Amerio, Mark Fedde, Richard R. Frank, Michael Hawkins, Gale Kohl, Joe Longo, Sam McRoberts, Paige R. Parrish, Amit Patel, Ellen Randle, and Gail Schaper-Gordon. Jane Kaczmarek, Lee Meriwether, and Jaclyn Smith served as honorary chairs.