Ruth Kinyon Whiteside Fisher

Edward Davis left Naples in 1985 to manage a private club in New Jersey, leaving a serious leadership void. In 1986 Ruth Fisher, who had joined the chapter in 1982 and attended many of its early events, reached out to the Chaîne’s National Council for support to save the seed of a good organization. Backed by a strong team of professionals, Ruth Fisher became Bailli in 1986 at a gala revival dinner held at The Registry.

Eleven members renewed their membership in the revived chapter, and 10 inductees were immediately added. By November of 1988 there were 41 members, and by December of 1989, the membership had increased to 54.

Ruth was an imaginative, meticulous event planner, and each event she organized bore her unique stamp, expressing eloquently the results of an avid mind and an eye for the unusual and dramatic. “Fine dining is one of the experiences of a lifetime…akin to art and music…and a wonderful opportunity to create fantasy.”

Among the memorable events that took place during her administration were culinary learning experiences at the Cuisine Management kitchens, a tasting of seven varieties of caviar, special Christmas celebrations at The Registry, with one an English theme and the second a Swedish Christmas Festival with the Ambassador of Sweden and his wife as guests, an Oktoberfest, and two period dinners at the Ritz-Carlton, one spotlighting French cuisine at the time of Caesar Ritz and Escoffier and the other recreating the Chaîne’s founding dinner in Paris in 1950.

Articulate and resourceful, Ruth became an inspiration to baillis around the country as she traveled to regional meetings and national conventions. It was no wonder, then, that at the culmination of her reign as Bailli she was awarded the prestigious title of Pair de la Chaîne by the National Council.