By Anna Hagley
Join Zamir Gotta at Steelbound Brewery and Distillery in Ellicottville, NY for A Toast to Anthony- a suicide prevention awareness event on the five-year anniversary of Bourdain’s tragic passing.
This event will take place on Thursday, June 8 from 5pm-9pm in partnership with Queen City Popped Culture, and will include a silent art auction to support Mental Health Advocates of WNY, David Simpson, and therartscollaborative.org, food by Celebrity Chef Om, music by Primo, live broadcasting on Energy Radio Buffalo, free CBD massages by Jess powered by iN:FuSD, and outreach by Mental Health Advocates of WNY. Gotta will speak about his experiences surrounding suicide and his mission to be a peacemaker.
Carrying the torch of peace; that, more specifically, is Zamir Gotta’s mission, and just one of many reasons he is passionate about suicide prevention awareness. Whether his deeply missed friend knew it or not, Bourdain left a lasting impression on Gotta about the importance of bringing people together, and he made much of that impression in Buffalo. When Gotta lost his son to suicide in 2022, he was once again reminded of the importance of bringing people together, of showing others there is always hope, and there is always someone whose world has been made better for another being in it.
Gotta first worked with Bourdain as a travel companion in Europe, a terrain he wasn’t familiar with, and when that tour came to an end, Bourdain returned the favor by bringing Gotta to the rust belt, showing him America from his point of view.
One stop on their rust belt tour was Buffalo, NY and when they flew to the city in January 2009, Gotta questioned if any magic could be found in the cold, gray atmosphere. When they landed, however, Nelson Starr (the ‘Visit Buffalo’ contest winner) handed Gotta a bottle of Russian vodka with the note, ‘Buffalo is waiting for you,’ and Gotta had a feeling there could be something special there to discover after all. Bourdain brought Gotta into the world of pig roasts, Buffalo wings, and beef on wek, and showed Gotta a community of people who demonstrated the city’s longtime slogan, the ‘city of good neighbors.’
Bourdain lit a torch of peace and connection by bringing people together in the town and around the world. But what made Gotta fall in love with Buffalo, he told The Villager, is that it was, and still is, all about the people. For that reason, he shared, he felt at home, and has continued visiting Buffalo ever since.
He has made a commitment to continue carrying the torch of peace that Bourdain lit by fostering community and togetherness. One way he has done so is by creating Peacemaker, a vodka by his namesake company, Zamir Vodka. Toasting with alcohol, he says, is a community builder. “It’s not about the vodka, it’s about the people.” Gotta partnered with Steelbound to distill the drink, shortly after which he fell in love with its Ellicottville backdrop. “It’s a great place to step away from the hustle and bustle of bigger cities,” he shared with The Villager.
He has also filmed a documentary with film director Stephen Powell, cinematographer and owner of Elmwood Media. The film has a ‘discovering Bourdain’s America’ theme, wherein he reunites with people Bourdain first connected him to, carrying the intention of spreading peace, friendship and unity, and of course remembering his dear friend. In addition, he has started a memoir detailing his travel time with Bourdain that is set to be complete next year.
The Villager is looking forward to this advocacy and memorial event on June 8th, and we hope you’ll come together with other community members to celebrate Bourdain’s memory and encourage a standpoint of hope in the setting of suicide prevention advocacy. Proceeds of the art auction to benefit Mental Health Advocates of Western New York.
If Bourdain showed the world and his friends anything, it was that one person can create a ripple effect of connection and peace. The world was made a better place for having him in it, and it is made better by you and every other reader as well. If you or anyone you know is struggling with depression or suicidal thoughts, please reach out to Mental Health Advocates of WNY, your health care provider, your local emergency room, or 988, the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.