Special Events Magazine, avril 2001
CRYSTAL
BALL
Changing scene: The lighting changed colors
and moods during the fund-raiser
THE CANADIAN CANCER SOCIETY LOOKS TO THE
FUTURE FOR ITS ANNUAL FUND-RAISER
By Keri O'Brien
The Canadian Cancer Society's annual Daffodil Ball is the biggest
fund-raiser of the year in Montreal, and last year's event raised
the bar even higher. The Millennium Daffodil Ball, held April 13
at the Chalet du Mont-Royal, beat the Society's goal of raising
$1 million (Canadian) by netting $1.4 million, event planner Alison
Silcoff says. No other cancer-related fund-raising event in Canada
has come close to that level of revenue, she adds.
Silcoff, president of Alison Silcoff-Marketing and Event Planning
in Montreal, created the Daffodil Ball concept seven years ago
to win more recognition from corporations for the Society. "The
daffodil is the symbol of the Cancer Society around the world," she
explains.
As the year 2000 approached, the event team decided to tie the
millennium theme into the fund-raiser. "We wanted to emphasize
that cancer touches everybody, so let's find a cure in the beginning
of this millennium," Silcoff says.
OBSTACLE COURSE
The Chalet du Mont-Royal sits atop a mountain in the center of
Montreal. After nine months of planning, the production team headed
up to the chalet to begin the four-day installation. "The
chalet is just a shell that serves as a refuge for cross-country
skiers in the winter," Silcoff says.
The installation hit an icy patch when 18 inches of snow fell
on Montreal five days before the ball. "Sometimes in Canada
in April you get a few snowflakes, but this was totally unexpected," Silcoff
says. The city's snow-clearing equipment was already put away for
the spring and had to be brought back out so the tent company could
get to the site.
Montreal is a bilingual city, another obstacle. "We had to
create the programs, invitations and all correspondence in both
French and English," Silcoff says. "You had to know which
language the person you are writing to would prefer."
Flower power: This Nougat
Glacé with Cherry Sauce and a Sugar Daffodil adds a
sweet touch to the lavish menu
FUTURE VISION
The ball always has been held at the chalet, so Silcoff wanted
to make the venue stand out for the year 2000. In decor, "We
got away from the garden look and went with a more futuristic look," she
says. Gilbert Lanouette of Fleurs Gilbert in Montreal created the
décor and lighting concept.
The team covered the tables in midnight-blue damask from Bench & Table/Celebrations,
Montreal. "Over every [dining] table, we hung 5-foot disks
of stretch fabric," Silcoff says. Above the disks, lighting
projected gobos of modern, geometric shapes such as overlapping
ovals. "The disks helped to bring the high ceiling down," Silcoff
says. "It was like you had your own ceiling over your table."
The same gobos were projected onto three giant spheres above the
dance floor.
But it wouldn't be the Daffodil Ball without daffodils. Each year,
the Canadian Cancer Society orders 40,000 daffodils from Scotland
as part of the decor. Last year, however, the daffodils got lost
somewhere between London's Heathrow Airport and Montreal, and ended
up in Toronto two days late. "We didn't wait," Silcoff
says. "We were calling Holland, British Columbia and Scotland." Fortunately,
a company in British Columbia supplied another 40,000 daffodils.
Lanouette placed about 400 daffodils in the shape of a giant wheel
on each table. Twenty candles of different heights sat among the
flowers. A silver star with a single daffodil threaded in it stood
9 inches off each table napkin.
SPEECH, SPEECH
At 7 p.m., the guests began arriving for cocktails and hors d'oeuvres
in the 66-by-82-foot cocktail tent provided by Fiesta Tents of
Montreal. "The whole front of the tent was French windows," Silcoff
says. "There was an open bar and champagne and a glorious
view of the St. Lawrence River."
The 570 guests dined on caviar, smoked salmon and sturgeon before
making their way into the chalet for speeches and a five-course
dinner.
The dinner was prepared under the leadership of Armando Arruda,
the off-premise catering director of the Queen Elizabeth Hotel,
Montreal. Silcoff says the menu, which included lobster and lamb,
was prepared with the kitchen facilities' size in mind. "We
wanted to include lavish ingredients but also plan something that
we could serve hot and fast from the miniscule kitchen."
During the meal, guests danced to the mix of top-40, disco and
Latin music being played by Samy Goz, a six-piece band from Paris.
Children of the volunteers visited each of the 57 tables to sell
raffle tickets. The top prize was first-class tickets to South
Africa and an African safari for four people. Swissair donated
the prize, worth $65,000. The raffle raised $120,000, Silcoff says.
FACING FORWARD
The Canadian Cancer Society is getting ready to stage the 2001
Daffodil Ball this month but is realistic in its fund-raising goal. "We
are not expecting to raise as much this year," Silcoff says. "I'm
hoping to raise $1 million."
By February, 11 new sponsors already had bought whole tables for
$25,000 each, something Silcoff attributes to a new Web site and
winning the 2000 Gala Award for Best-Fund-Raising Event at The
Special Event in January.
Silcoff specializes in corporate events across Canada, the United
States and Europe, but chooses to stay involved with the fund-raiser. "It's
an important client and an important cause."
|