As you may be aware, The Matthew Project hosted a Black Tie Charity Ball at The Gunn Club, Delia's Canary Catering, NCFC on Saturday 1st October. What a night it was!
With over 200 guests including ITV presenters, David Whiteley and Becky Jago as hosts for the evening, a fantastic time was had by all from start to finish.
On arrival, guests were greeted with a glass of Adnams Belle & Co 0% fizz. The venue was beautifully decorated with golden balloons, twinkly fairy lights and rambling ivy, with two fabulous LED dancers from Ruby Flames Entertainment. Jazz played in the background as friends old and new enjoyed a long overdue opportunity to dress up and catch up!
Dining commenced at 8pm with a delicious menu of Roasted Tomato soup, Beef in Barolo Wine and Chocolate Ricotta Cheesecake. At the same time, they were welcomed by Chair of Trustees, Liz Wiggins. They also learned more about the work of The Matthew Project from CEO Andy Sexton and watched the new promotional film created by Eye Film, that we'll be sharing with you later this year.
Andy told guests about TMP's Christmas Appeal, The Big Give Christmas Challenge which runs for a week from Tuesday 29th November to Tuesday 6th December. Every donation made during that time with be doubled with secured match funds. If you would like to donate and want a reminder, sign up below and we'll be in touch nearer the time.
As a bit of fun, the balloon bouquets were filled with confetti, and one on each table contained a golden raffle prize ticket! For a small donation, guests popped their balloons with a countdown from Becky and David, revealing twenty lucky winners!
Next came the auction, hosted by Auction House East Anglia Director Bryan Baxter, whose skills in working the room had guests bidding on ten fantastic lots. These included a four-night catered ski holiday for two in award-winning Hotel Staffler, the chance to create an item of silver jewellery with Sonkai Jewellers and a Samsung QE50Q60B 50 inch 4K Ultra HD HDR Smart QLED TV from Osiris IT!
Finally came dancing with the Joe Ringer Band. Two hours of live music saw our guests dancing the night away alongside more balloons, glowsticks and smiles all round! For those determined to make the most of the night, a DJ played a funky set through until 1am.
So as you may gather, it was a fantastic event which as well as lots of fun, raised just over £12,000 thanks to the support of those that attended and the individuals and businesses that donated auction lots and raffle prizes. It was wonderful to see so many supporters under one roof, and for that we're very grateful.
A very big thank you to the following...