The Birth of Ashville's Dining Out For Life
Harry Brown (middle) with Peter Pollay (left), owner of Posana, and Michel Baudouin, owner of Bouchon, 2014 -- photo by Citizen Times
While living in Atlanta in the 1990's, local fundraising giant Harry Brown had the opportunity to serve as a Volunteer Ambassador for Project Open Hand's Dining Out For Life (DOFL) event -- an annual, one-night, multi-restaurant fundraiser for HIV service organizations. The first year Harry participated in DOFL as a Volunteer Ambassador, he didn't know how deeply the event would change his life (and ours!)
DOFL Cupcakes Made Every Year by Longtime Participating Restaurant, Posana
"I'd lost a lot of friends to AIDS, and Dining Out For Life felt like a celebration of their lives. My enthusiasm must have been obvious because after only my first year as a volunteer, I was invited to join the DOFL International Board of Directors."
Harry's dedication to fundraising for HIV through Atlanta's Dining Out For Life campaign continued for almost a decade. Then, in 2000, he decided to make the move to the mountains of Western North Carolina, suitcase of DOFL brochures, posters, and table tents in tow.
While Harry searched for creative ways to channel his incredible passion for DOFL and his experience with HIV fundraising, there was another Asheville initiative brewing in the heads of a few local restaurant owners in town.
One evening Harry met Eric Scheffer of the renowned Eric Scheffer Group in Eric's then newly-opened Savoy restaurant. Being of like minded enthusiasm for creative projects and new ideas, the two struck up a conversation that eventually led to an important professional collaboration and a longtime friendship.
"The timing was perfect," says Eric, "I'd only recently been talking with Michel Bouduin of French restaurant Bouchon, Dwight Buther of Vincenzo's, and Tracy Adler from Cafe on the Square about a local independent restaurant coalition that could support and promote Asheville's hospitality industry. And Harry came along with this Dining Out For Life restaurant fundraiser idea, so we decided to join forces," says Eric.
Waitress during WNCAP's Dining Out For Life, 2016
Originally the Asheville Independent Restaurant Association (AIR) consisted entirely of DOFL participating restaurants. Harry would recruit restaurants to participate in AIR as well as in DOFL, and Eric would do the same.
Eric has a personal connection to WNCAP's mission. "The closest person to me growing up -- my cousin Brice -- was gay, and I lived with him for 6 years in L.A. I was there during the height of the AIDS crisis; and through Brice, I got very involved in the fight against HIV in California. We spent a lot of time protesting and supporting the queer community during that intense and scary time. And besides, Brice and his friends out there always had the best parties," Eric says.
Neither Eric nor Harry knew how quickly Dining Out For Life would grow. "I spent a lot of time talking to people about what the event was all about. I had to sit with people and explain so much to get them to understand that the stigma and fear were unfounded. I reached out to a lot of sponsors and talked a lot to businesses about support. Our favorite sponsor, Prestige Subaru, (now Fred Anderson's Prestige Subaru) was the presenting sponsor that first year, and they're still Asheville's DOFL presenting sponsor to this day, twenty-three years later!" says Harry.
Participating Restaurant, Twisted Laurel and Volunteer Ambassador John Stewart
For its first first year in Asheville, Dining Out For Life recruited the participation of 15 AIR member restaurants and raised $25,000. By 2014 WNCAP's Dining Out For Life was one of the top five income producing DOFL participating cities in the country, outperforming cities like San Francisco, Houston, Atlanta, and Miami. In 2014, DOFL had grown to include more than 100 restaurants and raised over $175,000 for AIDS care and prevention in WNC.
"Dining Out For Life is especially useful for raising awareness around the importance of HIV care and prevention. We began to really accomplish that more when we grew the event to include restaurants outside of Asheville. We wanted to get the message out that "Hey-- AIDS still exists. That was the most important thing we could accomplish in our most remote, high-risk communities. And moving outside of Buncombe County helped us grow the event and reach a larger population for outreach and education. That's still very important today," says Harry.
"DOFL is critical. AIDS is still a crisis, and it really should still be getting the attention it deserves," says Eric.
Dining Out For Life 2026 will take place at participating restaurants across Asheville on April 30th. Mark your calendars and choose your favorite restaurant today. Together, we can raise awareness and funds for life-saving services while supporting our local restaurant industry at the same time.
DINE OUT. END HIV.
Harry and Eric in Eric's Vinnie's Neighborhood Italian Restaurant