On Saturday the 5th of March we celebrated the annual CMRF Mad hatter ball in the Doubletree by Hilton. The Annual Fundraiser Ball which raises money for the cardiac unit in Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital. The Crumlin ball committee, the Ladies Committee and the CMRF Crumlin worked in conjunction with the No.10 Fund which was established by Johnny Sexton and Ronan O’Gara. The aim of this fund is to build a dedicated 6-bed day unit adjacent to the Children’s heart centre.
CMRF Mad Hatter Ball
The event kicked off at 7:15 with a Mad hatter drinks reception. Here the guests were able to mingle, chat and pose at the CMRF “Alice Garden Wall of Clocks”. In the pre function we styled the area with brightly coloured spandex and cloths finished off with china table top inspired centrepieces. These centrepieces were eye catching and very unique. They included teacups & saucers, oversized playing cards, butterflies and bright flowers. We had a Mad Hatter photo booth tent where guests could enjoy a photo with their friends trying on fun props. A large selection of trees in a variety of sizes, shapes, cones, lollypops and bay palms were around the room. Small touches like signage and decorated trees made the venue come to life. Kieran Harnett, social photographer made great use of the space and design enticing people for photographs.
At 8:15 the guests were then invited into the main dining room. The room had 45 tables, a large dancefloor and staging. There was a lot of event styling and décor elements that went into decorating such a large space. The colour scheme of the linen and up lighting was black & white with a pop of deep red. Three different centrepieces were used for the tables including crystal candelabras, large candle holders and chandeliers. The room was scattered with life size mad hatter props like the character Alice, bunnies and cartoon mushrooms. The three course dinner kicked off at 9 pm and between each course speakers, raffles etc. took place to keep the guests entertained. The MC for the evening was Oliver Callan who is one of Ireland’s top satirists and commenters.One of the fantastic raffles was for a 5,000 euro jewellery voucher for Cullen & Co. kindly donated by Charlie Cullen. The guests had to purchase and wear a balloon heart ring to be entered into this draw. Some of the amazing auction prizes included Justin Bieber concert tickets, Signed Irish rugby jersey and a training session with Johnny Sexton for 25 kids. The 3 course dinner was then followed by The Swing Cats voted as Ireland’s best swing band for the guests to dance & mingle the night away. During the course of the evening we were on hand to manage the event and ensure that the night ran smoothly.
The event was a roaring success. With both the guests having an amazing time & much needed funds being raised for the No.10 fund for CMRF Crumlin. We were delighted to be asked to assist on this charitable event & it was our pleasure to be a part of the CMRF Mad Hatter ball. Well done to Edel O’Malley & the CMRF team, Jean Whelan the chair & all of the Ladies committee. It was such a fantastic night all for a fantastic cause.