A fashionable crowd walked the red carpet as they arrived at the Oak Harbor Club for an elegant black-tie Candlelight Ball to benefit the Hibiscus Children’s Center.
Guests mingled during the festive cocktail hour, perused a selection of silent-auction items, and read up on the various live-auction items they hoped to bid on later.
After a delicious gourmet dinner, Matt Markley, HCC president/CEO, spoke of the significance of the event.
“It is fitting that we hold this event during the season of Thanksgiving,” said Markley. “We at Hibiscus have much to be thankful for.”
He said their support has both immediate and lasting consequences, as night after night, children can now go to bed safe, cared for and well fed, shielded from the trauma of family violence.
After recognizing and thanking the board and the event sponsors, he extended special thanks to the ladies of the Indian River Guild for their work on the event and their unending dedication to the children of Hibiscus.
“Our guild ladies have been an unwavering presence in the life of Hibiscus for 25 years. Since its beginning back in 1997, the guild has raised more than $9 million,” said Markley.
“I’m pretty new to Hibiscus and it really broke my heart, and it also helped my heart seeing how all the kids are being taken care of at Hibiscus,” said Mary Wright, gala committee co-chair with Diane Wilhelm.
“What I love about the guild is the women, and how everyone works together. Everyone has their specialties,” said Wilhelm, pointing, as an example, to the glittery centerpiece arrangements crafted over the summer by Carole Casey. “Everyone’s got a talent, and everyone brings it. And the camaraderie is absolutely incredible.”
While the guild can always use more volunteers, she said there is also a need for additional funding. The teens at the Hibiscus Village, whether they’re there for a short time or for many years, are always in need of something.
“When they come in, a lot of times they won’t have clothes, they don’t have anything, so it ends up being very costly,” said Wilhelm. “They have to have school supplies, counseling, tutoring, transportation to school and different events; it’s all really expensive.”
Prior to enticing guests to bid on the live auction items, a top-hatted Doug Sweeney spoke about the Career Pathways program, where teens learn culinary arts and graphic design, and the Activity Center, where they’re learning to play musical instruments donated by Jake Owen.
“The opportunities that these kids are being given, who had terrible lives up until now, is just absolutely fantastic,” said Sweeney, adding that Hibiscus has transformed lives and has saved lives.
Scott Roads, HCC board chairman, related a story about twin 14-year-olds, abandoned by their drug-addicted parents, who arrived at the village shoeless, with “barely a Publix bag of clothes.”
Malnourished and needing immediate care, they were welcomed and received it. Four months later, they are now healthy, well-behaved, in school, and in the Career Pathways program.
“They just seem like normal teenagers. So this is what Hibiscus does,” said Roads, before making a call to the heart for funding to purchase three much-needed vans.
The evening closed out with some spirited dancing to the fabulous Jordan Thomas Odyssey Band.
The Hibiscus Children’s Village in Vero Beach accommodates youth ages from age 12 until they ‘age out’ of the system at age 18.
For more information, visit HibiscusChildrensCenter.org.
Photos by Joshua Kodis
