Men Who Cook Serves Up Thousands for Lamar CISD

Local “celebrity” chefs demonstrated mad culinary skills and raised an impressive amount of money at the Lamar Educational Awards Foundation’s (LEAF) tastiest fundraiser, Men Who Cook 2017.

Johnson Development Corporation, the award-winning developer of Cross Creek Ranch, was the title sponsor of the Feb. 18 event that raised more than $182,000 to support innovative ideas and classroom projects proposed by Lamar CISD teachers that would otherwise go unfunded. The organization also offers scholarships to graduating Lamar CISD students and to the district’s paraprofessionals working on their teaching certificates. To date, LEAF has invested almost $3 million into Lamar CISD schools.

“The Men Who Cook event served up good times and raised an impressive amount of money for LEAF,” said Rob Bamford, general manager of Cross Creek Ranch. “We were happy to be a title sponsor for such a worthy organization.”

Fifty-one chefs prepared a delicious menu including Caribbean jerk chicken, pork ‘n bean salad and bread pudding for more than 650 guests. Participants also enjoyed music, dancing and auctions.

Generous support of neighborhood schools is a hallmark of Johnson Development, which currently has 17 communities under active development in Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth and Atlanta. Young Cross Creek Ranch scholars attend schools in either Lamar CISD or Katy ISD.