The co-founder of Lawry’s Restaurants helped build AbilityFirst 100 years ago. Join the centennial celebration June 7 in South Pasadena.
Before the Lawry’s prime rib became a landmark on La Cienega, before the seasoned salt found its way into a million American kitchens, Lawrence L. Frank made a different kind of commitment — one that had nothing to do with food and everything to do with who gets a seat at the table. When Frank helped found what would eventually become AbilityFirst in 1926, he was asking a question most of his contemporaries weren’t asking yet: what happens to the people a prosperous city leaves behind?
One hundred years later, AbilityFirst is still answering it.
A founding story hiding in plain sight
The centennial is the occasion. The Lawry’s connection is the story most people in Los Angeles don’t know they’re standing inside. The Frank Family — direct descendants of Lawrence L. Frank — will be honored at AbilityFirst’s 52nd Annual Food and Wine Festival on Sunday, June 7, 2026 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Urquhart Residence in South Pasadena. They are being recognized not for a single donation or a sponsorship cycle, but for a hundred years of sustained commitment that began before most of the organizations on the night’s sponsor wall existed.
Joining them among the evening’s honorees: Comerica Bank, recognized for more than fifteen years of partnership supporting employment, education, and community connection for people with disabilities; the Rotary Club of Los Angeles, whose civic leadership traces back to AbilityFirst’s own founding era; and Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, honored for her advocacy on behalf of vulnerable populations — including people with disabilities — across the county and her longstanding connection to the organization.
The evening will be hosted by actor and advocate Tal Anderson, who uses her platform to champion inclusion and authentic representation in Hollywood.
What AbilityFirst actually does
AbilityFirst supports people with intellectual and developmental disabilities — and their families — through programs built around independence, social connection, and personal growth. With more than 250 employees and programs spanning Southern California, the organization provides life-changing opportunities that help individuals build confidence and experience belonging, not as recipients of charity, but as full participants in community life. That distinction is the through-line from Lawrence Frank’s founding impulse to the work being done today.
“What began as a small community effort has grown into an organization that changes thousands of lives each year.
As we celebrate our centennial, we are especially proud to recognize the extraordinary partners and leaders
whose support has helped make our mission possible and continue to expand opportunities for the people and families we serve.”
Sergio Rizzo-Fontanesi
President and CEO, AbilityFirst
Proceeds from the Food and Wine Festival go directly toward those programs. Every bottle poured, every plate passed, funds the next hundred years of that work.
The table itself
The evening earns its Food and Wine billing. Caymus Vineyard and Riboli Family Wines anchor the wine program. Dulce Vida Tequila, Empress 1908 Gin, and Old Hillside Bourbon Company cover the spirits side with range and intention. CELSIUS and PepsiCo round out the beverage offering.
On the culinary front, El Cholo Pasadena and Tam O’Shanter — two of the city’s most enduring restaurant institutions — pour alongside Gale’s Restaurant, Kensington Caterers, Pez Coastal Kitchen, Stems + Neighbors and Friends, and Neighbors and Friends: The Kitchen. Nothing Bundt Cakes closes the evening correctly.
The sponsor roster reflects both the depth of AbilityFirst’s civic relationships and the seriousness of the centennial moment. Centennial Sponsor Comerica Bank and Platinum Sponsor Lawry’s Restaurants lead the list. Gold Sponsors include Crimson IT and Bank of America. Silver Sponsors — Columbia Bank, Chubb, Copperpoint, The Fletcher Jones Foundation, Landegger and Verano, Envision Consulting, Wimmer Associates, and Bocarsly Emden Cowan Esmail and Arndt LLP — round out a roster that signals real institutional investment, not casual cause marketing.
Why this centennial is worth paying attention to
Most nonprofits don’t make it to a hundred years. The ones that do have survived by staying adaptive without losing the original impulse — which is considerably harder than it sounds. AbilityFirst’s evolution from a local community effort in 1926 to a 250-employee organization serving families across Southern California suggests it has managed that balance. The Food and Wine Festival, now in its 52nd year, is its own kind of proof: an annual gathering that has outlasted trends, economic cycles, and the short attention span that tends to afflict civic philanthropy.
Tickets are available at abilityfirst.org/festival.
What is AbilityFirst and who does it serve?
AbilityFirst is a Southern California nonprofit founded in 1926 that supports people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families. With more than 250 employees, it provides programs focused on independence, social connection, and personal growth across the region.
Who founded AbilityFirst and what is the Lawry’s Restaurants connection?
Lawrence L. Frank, co-founder of Lawry’s Restaurants, helped establish AbilityFirst a century ago. The Frank Family continues to support the organization today and will be honored at the 2026 Food and Wine Festival marking the centennial.
When and where is the AbilityFirst Food and Wine Festival 2026?
The 52nd Annual AbilityFirst Food and Wine Festival takes place Sunday, June 7, 2026 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Urquhart Residence in South Pasadena, California. Tickets are available at abilityfirst.org/festival.
