Welcome and Happy New Year.
 
We have great things in store! Last year was our 50th year as a chapter - and we nailed it. Our charity work was on top. We partnered with new vendors, enjoyed new event locations, and welcomed new members. We restarted our certifications series again, and we are looking forward to continuing that in 2024. A special thanks to FTC for providing the location for our practical exams.

This year we established a new "mystery basket" team competition for our student members. We developed new relationships with companies in the agricultural community. And most importantly, we grew in friendship and fellowship.

Our charity and community involvement remained a priority inside and outside of the ACF. We were able to help Team USA meet their fundraising goals. We again supported Teen Moms Choose Life to help fill their local pantry. We participated in the Cattle Barron's Ball to benefit the Cure for Childhood Cancer. We also participated in the Taste of Central Florida which benefits the Coalition for the Homeless and Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida. And as always, we were once again able to send a van full of donations to Toys for Tots.
 
I would like to personally thank all of our board members for their time and dedication to our chapter and our members. We could not have done it without you. I appreciate you. Our new board will be announced soon, and they will be inducted at our President's Gala & Awards Brunch on Sunday, February 11th. SAVE THAT DATE! Exact location and time will be announced very soon. I am looking forward to celebrating with you.
 
Here is our 50th Anniversary Year in Review 2023 highlight reel:

• January - We started our year off with a grand luncheon hosted by Reimund Pitz at Le Coq au Vin Restaurant.
• February - Lake Meadow Naturals hosted our Feb event with an incredible Deviled Egg Smackdown sponsored by Edible Orlando.
• March - An exciting first for us, our March meeting was hosted by the Florida Beef Council.
• April - We met board-certified health and wellness coach Tina Wells, and she taught us about making healthy dietary lifestyle choices.
• May - We learned a lot of new things about watermelon from the National Watermelon Board, which showcased a variety of sweet and savory pairings, different varieties of watermelon, and the best company swag.
• June - Food Sales East hosted our June Social where we experienced the brand new Smithfield Food Truck.
• July - A delegation from our chapter attended the National ACF Convention held in New Orleans, Louisiana.
• August - UCF Rosen College of Hospitality hosted a standing-room-only meeting that featured Disney Recruiting and a Surf-n-Turf sampling from Halpern's.
• September - Caribe Royale hosted a mini vendor showcase for us with Albert Uster, Giovanni Rana Foods, Rader Foods, Future Food and Infinity Provisions, Inc with Boar's Head products. And of course the incredible team from Caribe Royale, who are also a new property member for us.
• October - This meeting had us up all night with coffee jitters courtesy of Mr. Cappiccino and the culinary team at UCF Rosen College of Hospitality.
• November - This month took us to our limits with our culinary demonstrations at the FRLA show, our participation in the Meet Florida Meat Farmers Market event, and our running a new student team mystery basket competition at Florida Technical College Kissimmee.
• December - We rocked it at our annual end-of-year holiday celebration at Core Foodservice, and you were again generous enough to fill a van full of toys for tots.