Fairytales do come true each year at the Ronald McDonald House of Tampa Bay's Storybook Ball held at the A La Carte Event Pavilion. Presented by Tampa General Hospital, the seventh annual ball supports the families of hospitalized children staying at three area Houses (two in St. Petersburg and one in Tampa).
For this year's Sleeping Beauty theme, Ronald McDonald's executive director Janice Davis, ball chairperson Linda Miller, and board of trustees member Vickii Block created an evening full of enchanting decor and entertainment. "Each ball is themed after one of the popular Little Golden Books series. Although we recreated the medieval environment in Sleeping Beauty, we wanted a variety of entertainment to appeal to the tastes of all 535 guests," said Davis.
Guests were greeted by Circley Birds from Busch Gardens Tampa Bay—elaborately costumed performers on seven-foot stilts made to look like birds. More Busch entertainment continued during the cocktail reception along with jugglers, a capella singers, and characters straight from the popular tale, such as Maleficent and good fairies Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather.
Magic wands weren't necessary to create Sleeping Beauty's castle in the ballroom. Block's company Spellbound Inc. donated the decor, which included facades and props resembling castle walls, iron gates, and forests. Four living statues from Busch Gardens posed along the backdrops, interacting with guests throughout the night. Even the stage was designed to look like a castle's entrance, complete with turrets and royal crests. The ceiling was also draped with red fabric and medieval flags. Ice Magic provided two bars made entirely of ice and branded with logos of Grey Goose and .phpers Company.
Tables also got the royal treatment with rich burgundy linens plus silver and copper accents or vice-versa. Two types of centerpieces graced the tables. One type had red and white roses and flowers with green accents atop tall wrought-iron stands with gold pillar candles, while the other arrangement consisted of white and blue hydrangeas with purple flowers and red roses in a large clear vase. At every place setting was a goblet with a pewter stem shaped like a dragon filled with a white Irish linen coaster from L'Elegance that guests took home as gifts.
A La Carte prepared a feast fit for a king and queen that featured petite pink peppercorn crusted beef filet and crab stuffed grouper with Yukon gold potatoes, sautéed vegetables, and a wild mushroom demi glace. A chocolate tower layered with milk chocolate ganache, red velvet cake, and chocolate mousse with .phpberry drizzle and red sugar sticks was served for dessert.
The foundation also presented its award of excellence during the annual ball, which was awarded to Derrick Brooks of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As the recipient, Brooks got to present the foundation's 2006 Community Grant of $50,000 to the All Sports Community Services.
Dinner was followed by plenty of dancing. Guests indulged in a late-night snack of cinnamon buns and coffee before retreating to reality as the clock struck midnight, like in that other popular tale.
—Vanessa Goyanes
For this year's Sleeping Beauty theme, Ronald McDonald's executive director Janice Davis, ball chairperson Linda Miller, and board of trustees member Vickii Block created an evening full of enchanting decor and entertainment. "Each ball is themed after one of the popular Little Golden Books series. Although we recreated the medieval environment in Sleeping Beauty, we wanted a variety of entertainment to appeal to the tastes of all 535 guests," said Davis.
Guests were greeted by Circley Birds from Busch Gardens Tampa Bay—elaborately costumed performers on seven-foot stilts made to look like birds. More Busch entertainment continued during the cocktail reception along with jugglers, a capella singers, and characters straight from the popular tale, such as Maleficent and good fairies Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather.
Magic wands weren't necessary to create Sleeping Beauty's castle in the ballroom. Block's company Spellbound Inc. donated the decor, which included facades and props resembling castle walls, iron gates, and forests. Four living statues from Busch Gardens posed along the backdrops, interacting with guests throughout the night. Even the stage was designed to look like a castle's entrance, complete with turrets and royal crests. The ceiling was also draped with red fabric and medieval flags. Ice Magic provided two bars made entirely of ice and branded with logos of Grey Goose and .phpers Company.
Tables also got the royal treatment with rich burgundy linens plus silver and copper accents or vice-versa. Two types of centerpieces graced the tables. One type had red and white roses and flowers with green accents atop tall wrought-iron stands with gold pillar candles, while the other arrangement consisted of white and blue hydrangeas with purple flowers and red roses in a large clear vase. At every place setting was a goblet with a pewter stem shaped like a dragon filled with a white Irish linen coaster from L'Elegance that guests took home as gifts.
A La Carte prepared a feast fit for a king and queen that featured petite pink peppercorn crusted beef filet and crab stuffed grouper with Yukon gold potatoes, sautéed vegetables, and a wild mushroom demi glace. A chocolate tower layered with milk chocolate ganache, red velvet cake, and chocolate mousse with .phpberry drizzle and red sugar sticks was served for dessert.
The foundation also presented its award of excellence during the annual ball, which was awarded to Derrick Brooks of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As the recipient, Brooks got to present the foundation's 2006 Community Grant of $50,000 to the All Sports Community Services.
Dinner was followed by plenty of dancing. Guests indulged in a late-night snack of cinnamon buns and coffee before retreating to reality as the clock struck midnight, like in that other popular tale.
—Vanessa Goyanes