Chef Gary LeBlanc

Founder and CEO of Mercy Chefs

After 35 years in the hotel restaurant business, Gary LeBlanc unexpectedly discovered his passion while volunteering during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It was there in his hometown of New Orleans that Gary first saw the incredible difference that a hot meal can make, but as a volunteer he was surprised and outraged by the quality of food being served.

Though the victims and first responders were grateful for every meal, there was little to no food safety being practiced by the other relief agencies. It was all about fast, cheap and quantity. In the months following his efforts in Louisiana, Gary became inspired to the point of distraction by the idea of excellent food service in a disaster zone.

It was this spark of inspiration that led to the 2006 founding of Mercy Chefs, a national, faith-based nonprofit disaster relief and humanitarian aid organization that serves high quality professionally prepared meals to victims, first responders and volunteers in natural disasters and national emergencies. For 16 years now, Gary has led Mercy Chefs into more than 30 states across the country and 13 countries around the world, serving nearly 25 million meals since 2006. As Mercy Chefs’ reach expands, Gary consistently remains committed to his original mission to “Just go feed people.”