Chicago Chefs Cook Fundraiser to Benefit Earthquake Relief in Turkey and Syria | Eater Chicago

"A Sioux Falls, South Dakota Mediterranean restaurant owned by a Damascus-born chef who is a James Beard Award semifinalist and has appeared on Beat Bobby Flay. The owner was personally affected by the Feb. 5 Syria–Turkey earthquakes — her relatives in the coastal city of Tartus survived but face long-term trauma and displacement — and she is traveling to Chicago as the sole out-of-town chef to join a large fundraiser for relief. She emphasizes how sanctions and banking compliance slow humanitarian aid to remote areas, worsening hunger and making it difficult for help to reach impoverished mountain communities." - Naomi Waxman