to dine for

Fawn Weaver is the CEO and Founder of Grant Sidney and Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey. She is the daughter of Motown Records producer Frank Wilson and a serial entrepreneur. After learning about freed slave Nathan Green and his work as a mentor to a young Jack Daniel, Fawn created a whiskey in his honor called “Uncle Nearest.” Fawn is the first African-American woman to lead a major spirits brand. Uncle Nearest is the only American spirits brand with an all female executive team. Over the flavors of her favorite steakhouse, Bourbon Steak in Nashville, Fawn shares her roller-coaster ride to make history, find her unique “why” and create opportunity for thousands of others along the way.

Simon Sinek is a British-American author, eternal optimist and inspirational speaker. He is the Author of the critically acclaimed books “Start With Why”, “Infinite Game” and “Leaders Eat Last”. He is credited with creating an entirely new lane of business: thought leadership. Over flavors inspired by the Mediterranean at Kismet, Simon shares his incredible journey to becoming one of the leading “thought leaders” in American business and his vision to help a new generation “find their why” and the source of meaning and purpose in their professional career.

Lindsey Vonn is a World Champion alpine skier having won 82 World Cup championships, the most of any woman in the world. In 2010, she won the Gold medal for downhill skiing for the US Women’s team and is considered one of the most decorated and winningest skiers of all time. Over the flavors of her favorite restaurant in Miami, Carbone Miami, Lindsey shares the psychology of a champion, her long and winding path in the world of skiing and how her purpose and mission has evolved into one of service through the Lindsey Vonn Foundation.

In 2009, Reshma became the first Indian-American woman to run for Congress. Her winding career path in finance and law had left her adrift and she realized that her role purpose was to serve. Losing that race became the impetus for her next creation: Girls Who Code. In 2012, she created Girls Who Code after seeing firsthand how few opportunities there were for girls in computing. Forbes Magazine 40 under 40, Reshma shares her passion for helping girls learn STEM and have access to the same opportunities as boys. Over the delicious farm to table meal at the health conscious restaurant The Well, Reshma shares her many obstacles on the way to success and what she feels she is uniquely poised to do in the next chapter of her life.

After graduating from Columbia and working stints at McKinsey and Company and Goldman Sachs, Robert decided to start an on-line real-estate company to tackle some of the problems he saw his single- mother face every day as a realtor. In 2021, Compass went public making Robert one of the country’s youngest black billionaires. Robert is the Author of No One Succeeds Alone: Learn Everything You Can from Everyone You Can. Over the flavors of Shabu Tatsu, his favorite restaurant in New York City, Robert shares his purpose for disrupting the real-estate industry and why his work will always be about helping people find their definition of home.

Chris Voss is a former FBI Hostage negotiator and the CEO and Founder of The Black Swan Group. He is also the Author of the best-selling book Never Split the Difference. A Professor at Harvard, Georgetown, and USC, Voss teaches every day tactics to win at negotiations in business and life. Over breakfast at his favorite diner in Arlington, Virginia, The Silver Diner, Chris shares the fascinating journey to become an expert in such a niche subject matter and “why” he hopes to share with others the hard-earned lessons, tactics and techniques he has learned from a life of public service.

Bethany Hamilton is a Professional Surfer and Author who survived a 2003 Shark attack that left her with only one arm. Bethany learned to surf at the age of 3 and gained her first sponsorship at the age of 10. After the shark attack, she returned to surfing within one month. Bethany was the subject of the documentary Unstoppable and now teaches class on resilience, grit and goal-setting. Over the flavors of her favorite restaurant in Kauai, Bethany shares where this journey has taking her and how her unique “why” has changed recently.

Ron Finley is a master gardener and Founder of The Ron Finley Project in South Central Los Angeles which is a gardening training facility. Ron believes all the lessons of life can be learned from gardening and spending time in the garden. On a mission to change the narrative about gardening, Finley encourages everyone to grow their own food, have healthy eating habits and care deeply about the planet. Over the flavors of a hearty soul food meal in South Los Angeles at Alta, Ron shares the detour that became the defining trajectory of his life and how it helped him redefine his purpose and “why”.

Elizabeth Smart gained International attention when at the age of 14 she was abducted from her home and held kept captive for nine months. Her horrific experience and the healing that took place after has lead her to create the Elizabeth Smart Foundation. She is a child safety advocate and passionate activist for children having supported the Adam Walsh Act, the Amber Alert system and sexual predator legislation. She works tirelessly to support legislation and school programs that educate and inform about sexual abuse. From a table at her favorite restaurant in Salt Lake City Utah, Elizabeth shares her incredible journey and the moment she learned her unique “why”.

LeVar Burton is an Actor, Director, and Television Host. He is best known for his roles as George La Forge in Star Trek and Kunta Kinte in the ABC miniseries Roots as well as the Host of the PBS show, Reading Rainbow for 23 years. He has received 12 Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award. From a table at his favorite restaurant Mistral, LeVar shares the journey to act, direct, write his way to his unique purpose and “why.” LeVar shares how his purpose has changed through the years and his distinct vision for his future career.