Chefs4Students.org: Alison Williams, Participating Grant Recipient

Former C4S grant winner Alison Williams, 22, of Denver, arranged crab cakes in the kitchen of the Chimney Park Bistro, 406 Main St. The Windsor establishment hosted the third annual event Tuesday night, in hopes of raising $15,000 to fund scholarships for promising young chefs.

Bradley Wakoff/bwakoff@greeleytribune.com

The question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” was never a hard one for Alison Williams.

Grandma’s chocolate chip cookies spoiled her as long as she can remember — so much that the Colorado State University student knew early on that she was meant to be a chef.

So Williams, 22, enrolled at Johnson & Wales University in Denver last year to perfect the art.

Williams can thank the Culinary Grant program, formed three years ago, to provide scholarships to budding chefs. Williams received a $1,000 scholarship to help her with expenses.

On Tuesday, chefs from throughout the world converged to raise more money for more scholarships.

Chimney Park Bistro Executive Chef Florian Wehrli, who trained in Switzerland, and nine other chefs teamed up Tuesday to raise money with an extravagant nine-course dinner at Wehrli’s Windsor restaurant for the second straight year. It is the event’s third year.

Everything involved, from the linens to the wine, was donated. And the chefs all paid for their transportation, so 100 percent of the proceeds could go into the scholarship fund.

The menu included everything from HoneyAcre vine ripe tomato salad and grilled quail breast stuffed with pan roasted garlic and basil wrapped in prosciutto to braised Spomer Ranch bison crepinette and Palisade peach parfait, raspberry sorbet.

Last year, the $150 per-plate event raised $9,000 for the fund. This year, every chair — and even some borrowed from Okole Maluna Hawaiian Grill across the street — sold out early. Wehrli said he is expecting to top $15,000 after all the money is counted.

The event has become a passion for Wehrli and his friends.

“We do this for the kids,” he said. “Culinary education is expensive in this country. If we don’t care about tomorrow by promoting good food and quality food today, why do it?”

Since March 2004, the organization has awarded 24 grants of $1,000 to students attending culinary schools throughout the United States.

More than 30 businesses donated everything from spices, cooking items and wine to a New Belgium bike, jewelry and a fishing trip to Wyoming for a silent auction.

Williams, who graduated in May and is now studying nutrition at CSU, said her participation in this year’s fundraiser capped a year of excitement.

“This is just amazing,” she said while helping Chef Michael Polcyn, a Certified Chef de Cuisine from St. Louis, prepare the Roasted Hi-Ho Sheep Farm Leg of Lamb. “I’ve never seen so much talent in one kitchen. I just can’t absorb enough.”

Also in town for the event to help out was Utah’s Crystal Frazier, 22.

Frazier, who attended New York’s French Culinary Institute on the scholarship, said the culinary arts has made her appreciate what she can do for others.

“I just like seeing the reaction on people’s faces when I make stuff for them,” she said while standing over a hot pot of water and blanching french fries. “This has been a great opportunity. It gives me a chance to give back to these guys for helping me last year.”

Wehrli, who donated a day’s sales at his restaurant, is said he hopes a live Web cam of the event and the organization’s marketing will convince other restaurants around the world to host similar events.

“We can only do this once a year in Windsor,” Wehrli said. “And the only way to do more is to give other venues the opportunity to do this. There are so many chefs who wanted to come, but I couldn’t put them all in my little kitchen.”