The fifth annual Eat, Drink & Be Giving dinner, hosted by Sunder Subbaroyan and Annette Sherbeyn, reflects a five-year commitment to helping more local students succeed – regardless of luck or zip code.
By the time Chef Dustin Valette arrives in the Quad Cities later this month, every seat at the table will already be spoken for.
But for Sunder Subbaroyan and Annette Sherbeyn, the fifth annual United Way Quad Cities Eat, Drink & Be Giving dinner is about much more than an extraordinary meal. It is about what can happen when people come together around a shared belief in the future of their community.
On October 24, Crow Valley Golf Club will host an evening featuring the acclaimed chef, continuing a philanthropic tradition that has already raised $715,000 over the past four years to support Quad Cities children.
Those dollars have helped provide vision screenings, tutoring, mental health support and resources for local schools – investments designed to help children overcome barriers to learning and have a stronger opportunity to succeed.
Now, in its fifth year, Eat, Drink & Be Giving is on track to reach a $1 million cumulative giving milestone – creating an even greater impact for local kids.
It Started with Helping Children See Clearly
For Sunder and Annette, their connection to United Way Quad Cities began with a very specific opportunity: helping bring Vision To Learn to the Quad Cities.
The program addresses a seemingly simple barrier to learning. Students receive vision screenings, eye exams and, when needed, glasses – removing a problem that can make it difficult for a child to read, participate and succeed in the classroom.
Since launching in the Quad Cities in 2023, Vision To Learn has expanded to 15 schools and screened 5,581 students. More than 1,250 students have received eye exams, and 1,152 students have received glasses, with 2,304 pairs of glasses distributed.
For Sunder and Annette, the numbers represent something much more personal.
A pair of glasses can remove a barrier that might otherwise make it harder for a child to read, participate in class and keep up with their peers.
And what began with helping children see more clearly has grown into a broader commitment to educational opportunity – and to making sure a child’s future isn’t determined by luck or zip code.
A Belief in What Happens When People Come Together
That evolution is one reason Sunder and Annette continue to invest in United Way and host Eat, Drink & Be Giving.
Their experience with United Way has shown them the power of bringing people together around a common purpose.
“United Way Quad Cities is a place where people are willing to come together for the common good, roll up their sleeves and just get it done.” said Sunder Subbaroyan.
For Annette, that commitment to community is equally personal.
“It’s hard to imagine a child trying to learn when they can’t see the words in front of them,” adds Annette Sherbeyn. ”That really stayed with us. And it made us think about all the other things that can stand in a child’s way. Every child deserves the opportunity to succeed, and if there’s something we can do to help remove those barriers, we want to be part of it.”
Together, their philanthropy reflects a belief that meaningful community change doesn’t happen through one organization or one investment alone. It happens when people are willing to bring their resources, relationships and influence to the table and work toward something bigger than themselves.
That philosophy is at the heart of United Way Quad Cities’ approach to student success. The organization brings together community partners, businesses, donors and volunteers to focus resources and create the conditions for more children to learn and succeed.
Five Years of Bringing People to the Table
Eat, Drink & Be Giving has become one expression of that larger commitment.
What began with Sunder and Annette has grown into a broader community effort. This year, they are joined by co-hosts Mike and Myra Daniel and Nate and Tawny Stoffregen, bringing additional community leaders to the table in support of the event’s mission.
The hosts have also added an upgraded First Pour fundraiser and Meet the Kids, a day of inspiration at Augustana College.
Over the past four years, Eat, Drink & Be Giving has raised more than $715,000 for local children through investments in vision screenings, tutoring, mental health support and school resources.
The goal for this fifth year is $1 million in cumulative giving through Eat, Drink & Be Giving.
This year, Chef-Vintner Dustin Valette will bring his culinary talents to the Quad Cities for the fifth annual event, joined by Executive Chef Derek Mattern of Valette. A fourth-generation Sonoma County native and graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Valette has built an acclaimed culinary career rooted in the ingredients, farmers, winemakers and traditions of Sonoma County. His Healdsburg restaurant, Valette, showcases contemporary American cuisine with French influences, while his work as a vintner brings the same attention to craft and place to the wines he creates in collaboration with renowned winemakers.
Together, Valette and Mattern will create an evening designed to be memorable both at the table and beyond it. “I hope everyone leaves full, happy, and feeling great about where their money is going,” said Chef Valette. “But the real impact happens afterwards, when a family gets what they need, a kid gets an opportunity they might not have had otherwise. A great meal is great. A great meal that actually changes something for a kid? That’s the best thing I can cook, hands down.”
And perhaps that is what makes Eat, Drink & Be Giving particularly fitting.
A dinner brings people to the same table. Philanthropy gives them a reason to stay there.
For Sunder, Annette and their fellow hosts, that reason has become increasingly clear over five years: to help build a Quad Cities where every child has the opportunity to learn, succeed and thrive.
Eat, Drink & Be Giving
- Saturday, October 24
- 6 p.m.
- Crow Valley Golf Club, Davenport
- 300 per person