On Monday night, nearly 400 people gathered at Bryn Mawr Film Institute for the premiere of Forks Over Knives, a revolutionary documentary written and directed by Lee Fulkerson that explores the relationship between our health and the foods we eat. The film makes the profound claim that many of the diseases plaguing Americans can be controlled by rejecting a diet of animal-based and processed foods. Joining us specially for the screening, which was graciously sponsored by Whole Foods Market, was the New York Times bestselling author Rip Esselstyn, who gave a short talk and signed copies of his book, Engine 2 Diet.
Engine 2 Diet author Rip Esselstyn signs BMFI's guest book after the fundraiser reception.
Fifty patrons enjoyed a special plant-strong vegan dinner upstairs at a fundraiser reception before the film, mingling with Esselstyn as a pianist played nearby. Provided by Whole Foods Market, the delicious spread featured Engine 2 lasagna, kale salad, fruit salad and oatmeal cookies.
For those unable to get tickets to the dinner (which filled up weeks in advance), Whole Foods Market provided vegan-friendly snacks in the theatre arcade, including fruit smoothies and a summer soup made without any oils. Whole Foods also organized free health testing including blood pressure and body mass index readings.
Above: Guest Kathy Pollard gets her blood pressure taken--104/62! She beamed, declaring, "I'm powered by a plant-strong diet!"
Esselstyn’s experience firefighting in Austin, Texas led him to write the Engine 2 Diet. BMFI was pleased to invite local firefighters to attend the event for free! Some of Bryn Mawr’s own firefighters and junior firefighters came to the event--and they brought their truck too! The firefighters were invited upstairs to grab a bite before the movie and then headed into the theatre to enjoy the documentary. Find out more about the volunteer Bryn Mawr Fire Company here.
Author Rip Esselstyn (back row, fourth from left) joined Whole Foods Market managers Ruth Harp (second from left) and Charlene Nolan (front row, center) to welcome Bryn Mawr Fire Company's firefighters to the screening.
The arcade was packed for this sell-out event! Some people came all the way from Florida to attend!
Admission to the screening was by suggested donation and all proceeds from this world premiere event and the fundraiser dinner benefited BMFI, a non-profit. For more ways to help BMFI, click here.
Did you see the film? What did you think of the event?
No comments:
Post a Comment