Design. Education. Social Progress.
We are excited to announce our 2026 Shared Legacies dinner, hosted by the Chase Family Foundation and Longue Vue:
October 13, 2026, 5:30 – 8:00PM
Shared Legacies celebrates the common values and courage of the Stern family of Longue Vue and the Chase family of Dooky Chase’s Restaurant. Both Longue Vue and Dooky Chase’s served as safe spaces for connecting diverse communities during segregation and the Civil Rights Era. We are committed to building on this foundation by working together in today’s New Orleans to collaboratively serve the needs of our community.
Raffle now open!
Purchase a ticket for a chance to win:
a dinner for four including drinks at Dooky Chase’s Restaurant
OR
a flower propagation and arranging class for eight at Longue Vue
Honoring
Imani Francis
Imani Sarai Francis, soprano, is a native of New Orleans, Louisiana. She earned her bachelor of music degree in vocal performance from the Boston Conservatory at Berklee College of Music and went on to receive both her master of music (2022) and doctor of musical arts (2025) in vocal performance from Louisiana State University, where she also pursued a minor in vocal pedagogy under the mentorship of Loraine Sims.
Imani’s operatic roles include La Ciesca (Gianni Schicchi), Pamina and the First Lady (Die Zauberflöte), Clara and Strawberry Woman (Porgy and Bess with New Orleans Opera), and Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), which she debuted in Salzburg, Austria. Most recently, she appeared as Musetta in La Bohème with Nicholls State University and premiered the role of Rosalinde in LSU’s production of Die Fledermaus.
A recipient of numerous accolades, Imani was named a District Winner and Audience Choice Award recipient at the 2023 Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. She also earned second place in the Lower Advanced Treble category and first place in the Upper American Negro Spiritual category at the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) State Competition, where she received the prestigious Governor’s Award in 2022.
Imani is passionate about expanding the operatic canon and championing works that celebrate the Black experience. She continues to build a career dedicated to vocal excellence, artistic versatility, and meaningful storytelling through music.
Did You Know?
The Chase and Stern families understand the importance of design in bringing together diverse communities.
The Sterns engaged pioneering landscape architect Ellen Biddle Shipman to create inspirational and healing spaces at Longue Vue.
Leah Chase supported local and national African-American artists while curating her dining room with a careful touch intended to spark conversation as well as comfort.
The Chase and Stern-Rosenwald families both supported Harlem Renaissance artist Jacob Lawrence.
Lawrence received a Rosenwald Fund grant in 1940, while Edith and Edgar Stern were on the Fund Board. The funding brought him to New Orleans and supported the creation of his Great Migration series.
Lawrence was one of the first artists Leah Chase collected. He visited Dooky Chase’s Restaurant with his wife when in town for work supported by his Rosenwald Fund grant. The print Leah purchased from him is still on the walls in the restaurant today.
Opera and vocal arts are longtime loves of the Chase and Stern families.
In 1934, Marian Anderson was hosted at Longue Vue in direct challenge to the laws of segregation.
Edgar “Dook” Chase III was on the New Orleans Opera Board of Directors; his sister is Leah Chase Kamata, a beloved local opera and jazz singer.
The Chase and Stern families believed in the power of a curated, shared meal.
Emma “Birdie” Brown was head chef at Longue Vue from the 1930s to the 1970s, famously creating classic New Orleans dishes for visitors from all over the world, many of them purposefully invited to discuss pressing social issues.
The importance of the Chase family in American cuisine needs no explanation — it was most recently formally recognized with an America’s Classics Award from the James Beard Foundation.
2025 Highlights
THANK YOU
for supporting our Shared Legacies 2025 event!
A special dinner at Dooky Chase’s Restaurant on June 12, 2025, launched this partnership — and our shared commitment to the cultural arts in today’s New Orleans communities. The evening included a sponsor hour in the legendary Legacy Room and a special appearance by New Orleans soprano Lindsey Reynolds.
Thank you to the sponsors and guests from this unforgettable evening!
