The Boston University School of Hospitality Administration Alumni Association will honor the lives of two distinguished graduates who perished in the attacks on the World Trade Center at a memorial auction at the Omni Parker House on Nov. 14.
Anthony Barbuto, an alumni development officer for SHA, said the organization hopes to raise at least $20,000 in remembrance of Lisa Frost, a 2001 SHA and College of Communication alumna and Heather Ho, a 1992 SHA alumna.
‘The money raised will go towards a memorial scholarship in Lisa Frost’s name that her parents helped set up along with people from California, which is where she was from,’ Barbuto said.
According to Barbuto, the money will also help fund a physical memorial for a potential new space SHA is currently campaigning to obtain.
‘It will probably be a dedication in the form of an alumni center or a student lounge in their names,’ said Barbuto.
The event, which is being sponsored by SHA alumni chapter boards in Boston and New York, will auction more than 100 donations from restaurants, hotels and renowned figures. Some of the donated items include autographed memorabilia from former BU hockey player and Olympian Mike Eruzione, signed books by Elie Wiesel and a pair of running shoes signed by legendary marathoner Bill Rodgers.
Leffingwell Elementary School in Whittier, Calif. also joined in the effort, selling T-shirts to raise $1,000 for the Lisa Frost Memorial Scholarship.
Frost graduated summa cum laude with degrees in business hospitality and advertising. In her final year at the university, Frost was co-president of the SHA student government and an intern for the Boston College Club in Boston.
‘There are still two years left of students who had classes with her, and from what I’ve heard, she was probably one of the most active and most decorated students in SHA,’ Barbuto said.
Ho was also well recognized in her field, quickly rising up the ranks as a pastry chef at a renowned New York restaurant.
Ho became an award-winning pasty chef after earning her bachelor’s degree in hotel and food administration from SHA and a degree in culinary arts from the Culinary Institute of America. She was an executive pastry chef for the Windows on the World restaurant, which was located on the 107th floor of the World Trade Center.
‘That’s the place to work as a pastry chef. You don’t go anywhere from there,’ Barbuto said. ‘They don’t open until 5:30 p.m., and she was there well before 9 a.m. I think that says a lot about her personality.’
The event also will auction luxurious weeklong trips to Cancun or Venice and weekend getaways at the Four Seasons Hotel or the Fairmont Copley Plaza.
The auction will be preceded by an hors d’oeurve reception starting at 7:30 p.m.
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