by Ashley Spears
On Saturday, November 7th, 2015 The InterContinental® Miami hosted The 21st Annual Make-A-Wish Ball. General Manager of the IntercontinentalM®iami Robert Hill, and President and CEO of Make-A-Wish Southern Florida Norman Wedderburn welcomed Miami’s social elite to spend a Greek mythology themed evening of entertainment. Guests walked the Gold Carpet and were greeted by gentlemen in white tuxedos trimmed in gold and directed to the cocktail party. The night’s décor and live interactive activation’s assumed the role and storyline of Greek Gods and Goddesses entertaining throughout the rooms. During the 90-minute cocktail reception, guests enjoyed drinks and hors d’oeuvres created by InterContinental Miami Executive Chef Alexander Feher while bidding at the Ball’s silent auction.
Poseidon himself summoned guest to the gold and white decorated grand ballroom. Once dinner commenced Gabrielle Anwar rekindled her role as the celebrity emcee and Auctioneer facilitating the legendary live auction. Guests enjoyed a chorus selection by The Miami Gay Chorus accompanied by Shareef Malnik, Gala Chairman and proprietor of The Forge Restaurant l Wine Bar, and wife Gabrielle Anwar. The lyrics sung called for guest to bid generously on the live auction, and by the looks of the amount raised, I believe it worked. Live auction items were A Snow Escape in Beaver Creek, Colorado (Mr. Joe Perez); The World is Yours aboard The World – Residences at Sea (Legacy Wealth Group with special thanks to the Schiralli Family); Luxury in Finland (Mr. and Mrs. Eugene and Brooke Frenkel, Luxury Auction, and Mr. and Mrs. Bob and Alysia Press); Haute Living St. Tropez Experience (Domaine Bertraud Belieu St. Tropez, Haute Living Magazine, and Palace Hotel Byblos); Your Porsche Boxster S (The Collection); Best of Britain (Hotel Connections); Fiji Fantasy (Mr. and Mrs. Albert and Renee Bertini); A Getaway for the Gods to Rome and Athens (Athenaeum InterContinental® Athens, InterContinental® De La Ville Roma, and British Airways); Party in Punta Mita (Strategic Hotels & Resorts and The Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita); Retreat to French Polynesia (InterContinental® Bora Bora Resort & Thalasso Spa, InterContinental® Los Angeles Century City, InterContinental® Moorea Resort & Spa, and InterContinental® Tahiti Resort & Spa). All proceeds from the auction went to Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida.
Later Marc Anthony commanded the stage as the featured entertainer for the evening. Serenading the audience with timeless hits such as I Need to Know and Vivir La Vida. DJ Nathan Asher, DJ Joe Dert, and globally renowned DJ and producer Chuckie provided the soundtrack to the after party which took place between 11:00 pm and 3:00 am at InterContinental Miami Make-A-Wish Nightclub. Niemen Marcus Bal Harbor and the models of Elite Models Miami added to the element of fashion with a chic and flowing runway show. The models were styled by Arel Ramos with hair by Danny Jelaca Salon. In its 20-year history, the InterContinental Miami Make-A-Wish Ball has raised $16.8 million to grant the wishes of more than 3,500 children from South Florida. This year’s 2015 Ball raised a net value of $2.25million and counting towards making the wishes of unhealthy children come true. Miami’s Make-A-Wish Ball was truly the event of the season and the purpose for the affair is nothing short of amazing.
Notable attendees included Al and Nancy Malnik, lifetime benefactors of Make-A-Wish Southern Florida; Bob and Alysia Press; Romero Britto; Taylor and Lisa Gang;Katherine Fernandez-Rundle; Donald and Lisa Pliner; Adriana de Moura; Lisa Hochstein; Igor Makarov; Elaine Lancaster; James L. Ferraro; Fabian Basabe; Michael Capponi;DJ Irie; Steven and Carly Patterson; Daniel and Stephanie Gold; Gary and Dana Shear; Edgar and Nicole Lozano; and Wayne and Arlene Chaplin.
Co-Chairs of the InterContinental Miami Make-A-Wish Nightclub were Maxwell Blandford, Sarah Bromley, Christine Corson, Nick D’Annunzio, Danny Estevez, Clif Loftin, Antonio Misuraca and Tara Solomon, with a Nightclub 2014 Host Committee comprised of the next generation of contributors as well as Miami’s premier buzz-creators in the fashion, arts, music and nightlife industries: Oren Alexander; Peter T. Ancona; Crista Azqueta; Francisco Baixauli; Brooke Biederman; Olga Castano; Eduardo Castillo; Norma Cuarezma; Christopher Dischino; Andres Fanjul; Robert Fernandez; Louis Fonseca; Nicole Gomez; Alex Holland; Ashlee Holland; Iced So Nice; Gideon Kimbrell; Scott Kranz; Chris Lentz; Luigi Lone; Jessica Martinez; Margene Muñoz; Nicol Pindelez; Jacquelynn Powers; Mel Rivera; Jake Roberts; Jared Rosenstein; David Roth; Hope Ruslin; Ilmar Saar; Rich Santelises; Schwartz Media Strategies; Lisa Sharoni; Molly Shearer; Guigo Simoes; Jeff Soulouque; Brittany Starks; Cecily Suarez; Ricky Tamayo; and TARA, Ink.
PHOTO GALLERY
photo credit : Tracey Destin
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge pictures)
