This was an awe-inspiring event that benefited the American Cancer Society (http://Cancer.org). The American Cancer Society is an organization that is tirelessly working towards a cure for that dreadful disease called cancer. They can only continue this battle with the help of businesses, volunteers, and event supporters like those that attended the 2011 Celebrity Waiter event at Loca Luna (http://LocaLuna.com) and Red Door (http://RedDoorRestaurant.net). Both locations have incredible menus and staff, which made it easy for the Celebrity Waiters to do what they came to do. The Celebrity Waiters included local celebrities such as Radio Personalities, State & Local Celebrities, TV Personalities, and more.
The celebrity waiters did a variety of things such as warm table conversations, serving food and drinks, tattoo modeling, shoulder massages, telling jokes, singing, and more. They went to such lengths, not only to raise money for a very worthy cause but also the bragging rights. This of course created a hilarious competition for the highest total in tips between the celebrity waiters. This competitive spirit added to the entertainment value for everyone throughout the night. War Memorial Stadium’s Manager Charlie Staggs stated, “I don’t care if I beat everyone as long as I beat Danny-Joe Crofford”. Former Radio Personality Crofford’s response was a stealthy strategic move to pre-initial the tip envelopes with his own initials in hopes of those tips being added to his total. To Crofford’s dismay, the other celebrities caught on to his move and quickly replaced the envelopes. Radio Personality B98.5’s Lisa Fischer said she wasn’t concerned about the competition and felt it would be an easy win. Olympic Trials Qualifier Leah Thorbilson agreed with Lisa because she said she was convinced the win would be hers instead. The competition was fierce and at the 8:30PM mark, 1st place went back and forth. The rankings came down to Lisa Fischer in 1st, Leah Thorbilson in 2nd, and Mrs. Little Rock Sharon Lanier in 3rd. However, it was determined later that Leah received a final tip that moved her in to 1st place as the overall winner for the event. Over $2,500 was raised throughout the night however this didn’t include the final tip from Leah or the restaurant’s staff contributions. Incredibly, even the regular waiters and bar staff from both locations donated their tips.
I had the privilege of being the crazy and comedic MC on tap at Loca Luna moving from table to table to help make sure the evening and the waiters were lively and fun. Although I like to joke around and have fun, I take events like this very seriously. Events like this are not only a way to raise awareness and funds to help fight cancer, but are also a great way to celebrate the victories in the lives of survivors, the memories we had with the ones we’ve lost, hope for the ones that are fighting, and hope for cures for those not yet diagnosed. This article can also be found on this website – http://ComedianDoc.com.
With the coordination efforts of the American Cancer Society (http://Cancer.org) staff and all of their wonder volunteers, this event went very smoothly and was a great success. The big hearts and care from them are simply amazing and I look forward to helping them again in the future.
Photos from this event can be found at – http://Facebook.com/MCDLink.
The Celebrity Waiters Included: John Thurston – Land Commissioner, Stefanie Bryant – Reporter / KTHV Channel 11 (http://TodaysTHV.com), Michelle Rupp – Reporter / KATV Channel 7 (http://KATV.com), Renee Shapiro – Daybreak Co Host / KATV Channel 7 (http://KATV.com), Jason Pederson – Reporter / KATV Channel 7 (http://KATV.com), Leah Thorvilson – Olympic Trials Qualifier, Donna Terrell – News Anchor / Fox 16 (http://www.fox16.com), Charlie Staggs – War Memorial Stadium Manager (http://WMStadium.com), Danny-Joe Crofford – Former Radio Personality (http://WMStadium.com), Sharon Lanier – Mrs. Little Rock, Poolboy – Radio Personality / Alice 107.7 (http://Alice1077.com), and Lisa Fischer – Radio Personality / B98.5 (http://B98.com).
A huge thank you to the Sponsors, which included the restaurant owners Mark and Lynn Abernathy of Loca Luna (http://LocaLuna.com) and Red Door (http://RedDoorRestaurant.net), Crain Ford at Chenal (http://CrainTeam.com), Shane Lester of Reverse Mortgage of Arkansas and Wonder State Mortgage (http://WonderStateMortgage.com), Michelle Howard of All American and Abstract (http://ActiveRain.com/MHoward2202), Russ and Tami Miller of Strategic Financial Group, and Bill Berg of Berg Property Services – Home Inspections.
Specially sponsored tables In Honor of / In Memory of included: Shane Chappell, Kim Stokes, and Clara Dee Chappell.
Also In Honor / In Memory of: Marion G. Smith (Doc’s Grandmother), Lisa Harvey, Nathan Hardan, Tom Kelley, Judith Darnell, Ida Isom, Jamie Olan, and MaKenna Renard.
There will also be a Celebrity Waiter event also occurring in Conway, Arkansas (http://ConwayCelebrityWaiter.com) on Saturday August 27th, 2011.
Photos by MCD Photography (http://MCDLink.com), assisted by Grant Morris. MCD Photography is part of MCDLink, Inc. that specializes in promotions, promotional photography, event coordination, websites, project management, and more.
Article by — Michael “Doc” Davis (MCDLink, Inc | http://MCDLink.com)