From MSM/GM: Chef Robert Irvine on What It Means to Take Care of People

During a live “Chief Chat” at the 2023 MSM/GM Conference, celebrity chef Robert Irvine illustrated what it means to take care of people—and then tied the anecdote to the Exchange’s support for the military.

The story involved a young woman named Kaitlyn, who ran a Rosie the Riveter-themed restaurant in San Diego that was featured on “Restaurant: Impossible,” Irvine’s Food Network show in which he helps struggling restaurants become successful. Like a lot of “Restaurant: Impossible” clients, Kaitlyn was initially resistant to Irvine’s tough-love approach, but she came around, and her restaurant started to thrive.

“I got so frustrated with her, but she eventually got it and was doing amazing,” Irvine said during the conversation with Chief Master Sgt. Kevin Osby, Exchange senior enlisted advisor. “And then one night she left the restaurant, and she was hit on a motorcycle by a hit-and-run driver who left her for dead. She was severely brain damaged. She’s still going through brain therapy right now.”

Before his “Chief Chat” with Exchange Senior Enlisted Advisor Chief Master Sgt. Kevin Osby (right), celebrity chef Robert Irvine encouraged the audience to wave their hands in the air and scream.

After he heard about her accident, Irvine called a Food Network executive and said he wanted to do a TV show to help raise money for Kaitlyn. The network fronted him $100,000, a quarter of the budget for an average “Restaurant: Impossible” episode. Irvine called the mayor of San Diego and asked for a street to be closed down. Then he held a fund-raising street fair, featuring food stations staffed by area chefs who had appeared in the show. The fair raised $180,000 to support Kaitlyn. Irvine also moved Kaitlyn’s mother to San Diego so she could be nearby during her recovery.

But Irvine didn’t stop there. He contacted the Secret Service, which he had connections with since he’d worked in the White House. The Secret Service tracked down the hit-and-run driver who had struck Kaitlyn.

“‘Restaurant Impossible’ started off as tables and chairs and carpet, but it became really personal to me,” Irvine said. “The thing about ‘Restaurant Impossible’ and my new show, ‘Weekend Warriors,’ is that they’re about taking care of people.”

This was where Irvine brought in the connection to the Exchange.

“We’re in the people business,” Irvine told an audience that included more than 200 general and main store managers. “All of us in this room are in the people business. All of us in this room. … Sometimes you forget that you change people’s lives because you get caught up in the day-to-day at work. I get to see what you do every day because I travel with the military 150 days a year.

“I really want you to understand the impact you have on people,” he continued. “And I think you lose that sometime unless somebody comes up to you and thanks you. And so I’m saying thank you for the hundreds of thousands and millions of people I see throughout the year, for what you do.”

Irvine, who joined the British Royal Navy when he was 15 years old, is a longtime supporter of the U.S. military. A portion of the proceeds from his businesses benefits the Robert Irvine Foundation, which supports mental health and wellness services, service-dog training and more for service members and first responders.

Irvine also talked about his new business-leadership book, “Overcoming Impossible: How to Lead, Build a Team, and Catapult Your Business to Success,” which he said is about learning from failures as well as building on successes. He signed copies of the book after the “Chief Chat” concluded.

Celebrity Chef Robert Irvine hugs Fort Hood Main Store Manager Maria Berrios Borges after his session at the 2023 MSM/GM Conference. During an audience Q&A, Berrios Borges thanked Irvine for helping her sister leave Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria in 2017 so she could attend Berrios Borges’ nephew’s graduation from basic training.

During an audience Q&A, Fort Hood Main Store Manager Maria Berrios-Borges, the main store manager at Fort Hood , told a story about something that happened after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017 that illustrated just how much Irvine is in the people business.

“You took this young lady out of Puerto Rico,” Berrios-Borges told Irvine. “That young lady’s my sister. You took her to see my nephew graduate from basic training. What you did for us was not only taking her to see my nephew graduate. You made an impact on our entire family. So we are friends forever.” Irvine responded by going into the audience and hugging Berrios-Borges.

Exchange Director/CEO Tom Shull, left, and Chief Master Sgt. Kevin Osby, senior enlisted advisor, present a POGs plaque to celebrity chef and military supporter Robert Irvine at the 2023 MSM/GM Conference.

Exchange Director/CEO Tom Shull presented a POGs plaque to Irvine.

“Two things,” Shull said to Irvine. “Deeds not words, first of all. That’s what you’re all about. And character is who you are when no one else is looking. A testimonial like that tells us all about your character,” he said, referring to Berrios-Borges’ story.

At the close of his conversation with Osby, Irvine issued a challenge.

“It doesn’t cost money to be nice to someone,” he said. “It can be opening a car door, helping somebody across the road, hugging somebody if they say it’s OK. You all do great things in your job, and you all do great things in your personal lives.

“Here’s my challenge to you: Do something good for somebody you don’t know, every day. Because collectively, if we all do that, regardless of stature, we have the ability to make change, collectively. Not one person, two people, 202 people doing the same thing, the same day, in a different state, makes change.”

Check out all the coverage from the 2023 MSM/GM conference:

Director/CEO Tom Shull Opens MSM/GM Conference With Message About Exchange Strength

From the MSM/GM Conference: Exchange Director/CEO Tom Shull Surprises 14 Associates With Coins

From MSM/GM: Top Exchanges Awarded Director/CEO Cup for Exceptional Service

Top PXs, BXs Awarded COO X Award, Building the Bench Award and Services Cup at MSM/GM Conference

From the MSM/GM Conference: Exchange’s Top Vendors Honored

From MSM/GM Conference: Exchange Global Connection Contest and Safety Winners

Watch now! Wrap-up Video From MSM/GM Conference and More!

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