By Joyce Coronel
Chandler has come up with a delicious way to support the arts, local businesses and youth programming all at the same time. “Eat Your Art Out Chandler” involves 11 local restaurants that have agreed to donate a percentage of their Tuesday, Feb. 24 proceeds to Chandler Center for the Arts. Debbie Rubenstrunk, who runs the center’s Youth Advisory Council, hopes many area residents will participate in the savory celebration. “It’s a great way for us to go outside the walls of Chandler Center for the Arts and into the community to support the arts,” Rubenstrunk said. The Youth Advisory Council Rubenstrunk directs is just one of several youth initiatives that are poised to benefit from the Feb. 24 event. The leadership-development program offers teens ages 13-18 the opportunity to learn key concepts and skills such as resume writing, social etiquette and how non-profits are structured. “What’s so exciting about this program is that these are young leaders,” Rubenstrunk said. “These are people who are going to be on boards — they are going to be our future decision-makers.” Some 15 teens serve on the council from October to April each year, and Rubenstrunk said many return as alumni to attend sessions or help interview potential candidates. Students from all over the Valley apply to serve on the council and many of them, Rubenstrunk added, might not have spoken to each other had they attended school together. “What I love to see happen is that this program is like the great equalizer,” Rubenstrunk said. “It breaks down some barriers and that’s what we end up with when we go off to work in the real world.” Chris Gummow, a senior at Chandler High School, served on the Youth Advisory Council during 2012-2013. He found the experience so fulfilling that he returned to the program as an alumni. Today, he works as an intern for the general manager at Chandler Center for the Arts, learning the behind-thescenes, administrative side of the facility. He hopes to attend Harvard University in the fall and said the skills he gained serving on the Youth Advisory Council proved invaluable. “There’s just so much that we learned,” he said. “It’s a really great program.” Ernie Serrano, vice president of restaurant operations for Serrano’s, one of the restaurants participating in the event, served as president of the board for Chandler Center for the Arts for three years. “When this event came around for kids, I felt like we’ve been blessed, so why not give back to our community?” Serrano said. “Eat Your Art Out Chandler” also supports the free summer concert series and the Connecting Kidz programs at the Chandler Center for the Arts. For a complete list of participating restaurants, visit chandlerarts.org.
An appetite for art: Diners will feed on restaurants’ generosity
