26 vendors. 33 sponsors. 250 guests. $30,000.
The room was incredible. The Arctic Club Hotel was the perfect setting for a bridal benefit. The beauty of the stained glass ceiling is unparalleled; the glass wall panels reflecting the full and buzzing room.
The night was perfect. It was a crisp autumn evening, not a cloud in the sky. You could feel the excitement humming in the air.

The ambiance was unbelievable. Designers from all over came together to present an elegant affair. Steven Moore created the freshest, most abundant table decor, complete with roses and pears. Melissa from Chic Celebrations took the room to a whole new level with dramatic chocolate draping. Christopher Flowers created artistic bouquets for our roaming couture models. They were impeccably styled by Liz Navarro, The Gown Diva, and Erin Skipley of Bellatrix Studio, wearing couture fashions from La Belle Reve and Jem's Jewelry. Cupcakes and desserts went like hotcakes from Wink Cupcakes and Divine Confections. All to the jazzy tunes of the Jason Parker Quartet and the snazzy spins from Brian Dale of Wavelink Music. Brittany of Dolce Design added her magic touch to vendor signage and put the final touch on our fabulous catalogs. Vendors exhibited their services and donated a fabulous wedding item for the silent auction. Can you believe there were over 20,000 jellybeans in the guess jar??

The events on stage stole the show. Luck was on our side when we became friends with Brooke and Monti of Movin 92.5fm; they were a perfect fit as our emcees. Speakers poured their hearts out to a sympathetic audience about how breast cancer has unfairly invaded their lives; there wasn't a dry eye in the house. And finally, the Stokes Auction Group brought the event home with a goosebump-inducing, excitement-building, final act of unselfish giving during the live auction, fund-a-need, and martini bid, where no bid was too high for a tray of drinks for your friends in the crowd.

The memories will last forever. Thanks to Kate McElwee's photobooth, event photography by Jeff La Plante, and video footage from Edit 1 Media, we will have lots of great memories to look back on.

The generosity was off the hook. You gave $30,000. The Making Memories Foundation states that the average wish of a terminally ill cancer patient is $4,000. Some are higher, some are lower. You've all just granted so many wishes to so many deserving families.

We applaud you, guests, sponsors, volunteers, and vendors. Well done.

Let's do it again next year, shall we?
all images and design copyright 2008 Get Hitched, Give Hope.