Get Ready for Taste of the U!

Employees of the University of Mississippi Medical Center are planning the 22rd Annual Taste of the U on Feb. 25. UMMC departments and divisions create chef teams, menus and choose a theme, ranging from the Roaring Twenties, to Hogwarts, to Mardi Gras and more.

Teams cook recipes, decorate booths and dress in costumes to represent their chosen themes and put on an impressive, multi-theme party at the Jackson Medical Mall. The event is put on by the UMMC Alliance, a non-profit organization whose projects benefit patients, students and the Medical Center campus environment.

Tickets for 2012 Taste of the U, which is open to the community, can be purchased for $25 for adults, $15 for students and residents, and $5 for children under 12. Tickets may be purchased online or at the door.

Taste of the U attendees can stroll through extravagant displays and sample as many taste-sized portions as they desire. A live band, Hunter Gibson and the Gators, will perform at center stage. The chef teams' offerings are sampled by a cast of celebrity judges who bestow a number of awards, including the coveted pig trophy, Dr. Fine Swine, presented for best overall showmanship.

The 2012 Taste of the U Honorary Chair is Dr. Helen Turner, UMMC associate vice chancellor for academic affairs and 28-year faculty member. Turner is the central figure in the 2012 Taste of the U as she demonstrates the professionalism and excellence that UMMC strives for.

Alliance board members have committed to donating funds raised this year at Taste of the U to the Mississippi Children's Justice Center. The center coordinates professional investigative, assessment and intervention services for abused and neglected children and their families. It employs one of only a handful of board-certified forensic medicine specialists in the nation and is the only such center in Mississippi.

A new year is under way, and faculty, staff and students across UMMC are seizing the opportunity to make it a healthier, happier 2012.