On Friday 4th March the grocery industry came together for the prestigious Annual Diamond Ball at the Hilton on Park Lane. The evening was a huge success, and thanks to the generosity of all who attended, the money raised exceeded £235,000! On the night, the ever-popular Grand Raffle with more than 35 fantastic prizes brought in more than £11,500; whilst the £20 Diamond Draw raised in excess of £8,500 with one lucky person winning a fabulous pair of diamond earrings worth £4,000.
The Ball was attended by key industry figures with the welcome speech given by Mark Price, Managing Director of Waitrose and President of the Caravan Fundraising Committee who thanked everyone who had contributed to the evening. We have been extremely fortunate to have had the personal support of Mark during his Presidency and we would like to thank him for his commitment to the charity. Mark also announced that Mike Coupe, Group Commercial Director at J Sainsbury plc, will be taking over as President of the Caravan Fundraising Committee from April 2011.
During the evening, Caravan recognised the contribution of our volunteers who have given their time for at least ten years to help the charity in its work. The Caravan Hall of Fame is our way of saying thank you to all these committed volunteers. This year Caravan was pleased to welcome a further four new members – Sir Ian Botham OBE, Paul Lewney (Kavli Ltd), Paul Monk (InVentaBrand Ltd) and John Papworth (Bakemark Pty Ltd).
Photographs of the Ball can be seen on the Simply Photography website for purchase and a selection are also available within our Picture Gallery.
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We would like to hear your opinions on this year's Diamond Ball - please take a few minutes to fill in our Diamond Ball 2011 post-event survey. Thank you!
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Next year’s Annual Diamond Ball will take place on 9th March 2012 with reservations now being taken. Please contact Caravan on events@caravan-charity.org.uk
