As the only domestic violence shelter for women and children in San Benito County, the Emmaus House has served a vital role for thousands of women since it opened in 2006. With just one full-time employee, the Emmaus House is a small operation, making fundraising paramount to its existence.
That’s where the Best of San Benito County Food & Wine comes in. The fifth edition of the Best of San Benito County Food & Wine event took place on Oct. 25 at San Juan Oaks Golf Club. The fundraiser featured a silent and live auction, a six-course food and wine pairing and seasonal beer from Grillin & Chillin.
“This is our signature fundraising event for the Emmaus House,” said Patrice Kuerschner, executive director of the Emmaus House. “This year we have a wonderful opportunity with a matching funds grant by the Community Foundation of San Benito County. So any money we raise here tonight will be matched. That’s extremely important to us because the county was not successful in securing the CDBG (Community Development Block Grant, which is one of the longest running programs of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) for public services for the next two years, and that represented about 45 percent of our operational funding.”
Tickets were $125 per person, and 12 items were sold during the live auction. The biggest bid came for Item No. 3, a four-day, three-night stay at a Capitola beach house for the Begonia Festival next year. That pulled in a cool $2,000.
Item No. 5, a one-week stay at the Mayan Palace Resort in Puerto Penasco, Mexico, pulled in $1,825. There were also over a dozen items sold in the silent auction, which allowed people to put in written bids. Whomever had the highest bid by the close of the silent auction, 6:15 p.m., won the item.
“We chose this event as an opportunity to showcase the best San Benito County has to offer,” Kuerschner said. “So each year we bring in guest chefs—some of whom were raised in San Benito County—and have moved on to bigger and brighter venues or those who have recently imported into our county because this county has a wonderful bounty of harvest-type items to offer. And we have wonderful wineries that we pair with chefs each year.”
The meal was prepared by renowned chefs Michael Fisher of Fisher Catering, Daniel Mendoza of the Hilton Garden Inn of Gilroy, Rob Stevens of Paines, Doug Kuerschner III and Matt Sneddon of Bon Appetit. Kelsey Larson of Bernardus Lodge prepared the dessert. The fourth and fifth courses were the star dishes of the event.
Kuerschner III prepared the fourth course, a wild mushroom risotto with fall greens, honey crisp apples, cambozola and a roasted chicken au jus. Sneddon prepared the fifth course, a beef tenderloin and potato leek puree with crispy Brussels sprouts with a Syrah reduction and lemon persillade.
A union electrician, Kuerschner III was the chef of the now-defunct Don Ciccio’s Ristorante. He still cooks for friends and family, but in terms of public events, he does only one a year: The Best of San Benito County Food & Wine.
“It’s always fun to get together with all the chefs from the community,” he said. “We all kind of know each other, and I look forward to it every year. It’s a great cause, and you can’t beat it.”
Sneddon, a Campbell resident, lived in Hollister from ages 8 to 22. Sneddon works for Bon Appetit, an onsite restaurant company that caters to schools, museums and corporations. In Sneddon’s role, he cooks for Lucas Arts Software in San Francisco.
Sneddon, who grew up working at Ridgemark waiting tables, credited his parents for driving him to achieve his culinary potential.
“Throughout my early 20s my parents (Barry and Frances) pushed me to go the culinary route after I dropped out of college,” he said. “I owe a big thanks to them for where I’m at today. I love coming here for this event because in San Benito County you have access to the freshest produce, and it feels very special to be back. Even though I no longer live here, I’m a small-town kid at heart.”
Featured wines included a Wild Eye Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon, Pietra Santa Rosato, Donati Chardonnay, Teague Cabernet Sauvignon, Alicats Syrah and Bonny-Doon Vinferno.
Samantha Zaragoza, a parenting specialist at the Emmaus House, has come to the event all five years. Zaragoza cited several reasons for coming back every year, from the food and wine to the great social atmosphere to the significance of the event.
“I love to see what’s on the menu because it changes every year,” she said. “There’s been locally-caught rabbit, wild boar, crab cakes and a lot of San Benito County beef. There’s a great sense of community at these events, and I like sitting at tables with different people every year.”
Patrice Kuerschner expressed pride in working at the Emmaus House, which provides a huge service to those in need. Not only is the Emmaus House the only temporary and emergency shelter in San Benito County, but it also brings in women for additional safety reasons as well.
“We bring in women who are victims of human trafficking from other areas, or victims of domestic violence from other areas,” she said. “We have a wide network and work with a number of shelters regionally.
“For me, it’s personally rewarding to see women and their children who come to us broken, terrified, frightened, who have no sense of direction. They stay with us to get counseling and take classes, and get the growth and empowerment they need so they can hopefully move on in a positive direction.”
