MEET THE MAKERS: Phoenix
EDWARD JONES PRIVATE EVENT
On Friday, Feb. 28, 2020, about 60 Edward Jones Financial Advisors and their families and friends joined together at the Unexpected Art Gallery’s Speakeasy to raise a glass to the local culinary scene and meet the local makers we covered in Phoenix, Ramona Farms.
The evening included delicious savory bites catered by Ivan Jacobo of Anhelo featuring tepary beans from our featured makers. Beer from Arizona Brewing Co. was poured and spirits from Grand Canyon Brewing were stirred into cocktails. Mario Garcia played soft tunes on his guitar, and his paintings were hung around the room.
The event began with tasteMAKERS host and producer Cat Neville conducting a live interview with Ramona and Terry Button, and their daughter, Velvet. The three discussed their family’s history, beginning with Ramona’s story of her father foreseeing that she would be the one to bring the tepary bean back to her community.
After the interview, guests were taken in groups downstairs for an cooking experience with Velvet Button. She demonstrated how to grind corn by hand, allowed folks to interact with foraged desert herbs and allowed guests to try dishes made with the historic tepary bean. One takeaway: grinding corn is much more difficult than you would expect. Elbow grease is required!
The event also featured Kristin Wesley, a live artist who painted a scene of Ramona Farms’ tepary bean fields. The beans were mixed into the paint, giving it texture and a personal touch. At the end of the evening, Cat and Kristin surprised the Button family with the painting. The family had no idea she was going to give it to them and they were beaming with excitement and appreciation when they found out. (See photos below!)
The evening was a special way to thank Edward Jones for its continued support and celebrate the Maker Movement in Phoneix.
Meet the Makers is a companion to tasteMAKERS, a new national public television series that celebrates the makers who are rolling up their sleeves and defining the flavor of American food and drink.
Meet the Makers is made possible with the support of our sponsors: Edward Jones and Natural Tableware. tasteMAKERS is presented by the Nine Network of Public Media and distributed by American Public Television.