LDEI-Kansas City is a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization, a chapter driven association. Membership is by invitation only and new members are selected by our individual members and our members abide by LDEI’s bylaws. There is an international board of directors, a council of delegates, and a management association serves as the administrative director. There is an annual conference of any members who want to attend, held and directed by one host chapter. The first chapter of LDEI was in New York City in 1976 when 50 women became Les Dames d’Escoffier, basically in response to the all-male Les Amis d’Escoffier which was created in 1959 in Boston. Formed in 1998, Kansas City Dames’ vision is straight-forward. We: * Share knowledge with each other, other professional women in our field and the public * Support our members * Offer leadership in Kansas City’s (and surrounding areas’) culinary world * Provide educational opportunities and create scholarships * Host philanthropic events for the larger community in order to support our causes (primarily scholarships) We also support our international organizations initiatives which currently include: * The Global Culinary Initiative whose mission is embrace our global communities through culinary connections that will provide educational programming, training programs, and cultural exchange * The Green Tables Initiative which began in 2005 and whose mission is to expand the relationships among urban and rural farms and gardens to school, restaurant, and kitchen tables