About eight years ago, we were at the 100th birthday dinner of a longtime Palm Beach resident when one of the out-of-town guests, obviously unfamiliar with the island's demographic, decided to make a toast to the birthday boy.
"It's such a wonderfulthing that we are all here tonight celebrating (Birthday Boy's) 100th ," he said,"What a momentous occasion. 100 years old. Wow. How many people herehave ever been to a 100th birthday?"
Nearly every one of the 75people in the room raised their hand.
Thetoastmaster, deflated,returned to his seat.
Longevity in Palm Beach residents is not unusual. Sunshine,saltair, and a gigantic pile of cash are effective remedies against life-shortening stressors.
Longevity on the social calendar? Not so much.
How many charitieshave set their sights on Palm Beach dollars, only to be ground up by the saber teeth of the charity circuit?
We've been watching for nearly 40 years, so we can give you an exact count. Abajillion.
For a charity event to survive and thrive, it needs three things:a donor base that believes in its mission,the same or near-same date on the calendar, and a chairwoman with the hide of a rhinoceros.
(Yes, there are chairmen, too, but c'mon ... we all know who does the real work.)
And, when we become the Empress of Everything— which should be any day now—the chairwoman of anevent celebrating a milestone anniversary would be gifted the appropriate bauble. For a 25th anniversary, some silver. For a 40th, a ruby.Sorta like being a wife but without the annoying baggage.
Christmas Ball for the Animalsturns 50
On Dec. 9 at theSailfish Club, the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League's Christmas Ball for the Animals is marking its 50th anniversary. Pauline Pitt is chairwoman.
“Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League is the premier animal shelter that I know of.They built awonderful new facility to care for and adopt dogs and cats, animpressive veterinary facility that provides the best care, offers and affordable services for people and their own animals," Pitt said."I am so honored to have chaired this benefit for almost ten years. For our50th anniversary we are homing in on finding homes for as many as 6,500 animals – the most in the 96-year history of Peggy Adams.”
Ironically, the highlight of the galais the presentation of the Gold Medal to an outstanding supporter. The thing is the size of a gladiator's shield, so maybe for 2021 they could go a little smaller and hammer the leftover into a nice cuff for the chairwoman.
Preservation Foundation turns 40
The Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach, too, is marking a milestone this season.
On March 4 at Bradley Park, thefoundation will mark40years since its first"gala" took place at pre-Trump Mar-a-Lago,
We say "gala" because it was actuallya co*cktail reception. The extremely well-connected Earl E.T. Smith, the last U.S. ambassador to Cuba and the founder of the Preservation Foundation,put in a call to Post Foundation trustee Rodion Cantacuzeneto request the use of Mar-a-Lago.
After issuing a "no photography" directive, Cantacuzene agreed — because who was going to say no to Earl Edward Tailer Smith? — but didn't exactly lay out the Limoges, if you know what we mean.
The caretaker basically pulled the covers off the furnishings in the living room, blew the dust off the mantle and roped off the other doorways to keep snoopy guests from wandering around.
The smell of dust and mildew was so pervasive that we were struck with a sudden wave of nausea and, with no time to find a restroom, bolted out the front doorand barfedin the shrubbery.
Turns out it wasn't dust or mildew or pervasive. It was pregnancy.
Things have changed.Nobody's pregnant and we're not barfing in the boxwoods, usually. And the dinner dance is among the season's coveted ducats.
“2022 marks the 40th anniversary of the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach’s Dinner Dance," saidPreservation Foundation chair Betsy Shiverick.
"In addition to providing great joy to many people, these events have raised millions of dollars to restore treasured landmarks like Sea Gull Cottage and Town Hall and create extraordinary green spaces like Pan’s Garden and Bradley Park. We are profoundly grateful to our supporters and remain dedicated to our mission to protect the heritage and enhance the beauty of Palm Beach.”
Taking place in an elegant sailcloth tent, the 2022 Dinner Dance at Bradley Park will evoke the glamour of years past and highlight one of the organization’s most recent town-serving projects. The historic, waterfront park, located on the town’s original main street, was the site of a $2.7 million beautification project spearheaded by the Preservation Foundation in 2017.
Muffy Miller and Jennifer Fischer are chairwomen of the 2022 dinner dance.
A ruby brooch for both!
Emerald Isle Ball turns 30
The American Ireland Fund will mark the 30th anniversary of its Palm Beach gala in February, and even though it's calledthe Emerald Isle Ball, those green gems ain't coming for another 25 years.
For 30 years, its pearls.
The event brings out the authentic jewels, the designer gowns, and the pre-dinner speeches.Mother Macree, give an Irishman an microphone and a captive audience and he thinks he's Winston Flippin' Churchill.
We won't mention any names but his initials are FrankMcCourt.
The Emerald Isle Ball is one one of the few out-of-town charities that earmarks some the evening's haul for a local charity.
"The Palm Beach community has generously embraced the work of TheIrelandFunds for over 30 years," said board member and honorary co-chairwomen Michele Kessler. "Thousands of lives have been improved through TheIrelandFund'ssupport of nonprofit organizations active inIreland, and here in the local community, which receives a portion of proceeds from our galas. We look forward to gathering together in 2022 to carry on thisgreat tradition."
The event is Feb. 17 at The Breakers.
