After months of anticipation, guests arriving at the Association Midsummer’s Eve Ball were greeted with a glass of champagne and their first glimpse of the marquee. Eco-friendly and the very latest trend, the myriad of pink and orange flowers were made of paper and inspired by an original design concept which pervaded the styling of the Ball - from the promotional logo to the hot pink clipboards.

As guests moved to their tables following the champagne reception, the actress Pauline Quirke (Birds of a Feather; Maisie Raine) got the fundraising ball rolling by hosting a warm up game of “hit or miss”. Dinner was followed by the Live Auction, brilliantly managed by Mr Chris Mills, and raising an astonishing sum of money. The Silent Auction and Tree of Temptation ran throughout the night and the final total raised by the Ball for equipping the new buildings was a staggering £83,798.

As the night drew on live band, CoverStar, got everyone on the dance floor to enjoy a fabulous and memorable evening.

The Ball was the result of a year’s hard work by the Ball Committee and sub-committees who worked tirelessly to make the event a success - masterminding the advertising, auctions/auction catalogue (Ball Auction Catalogue), design, catering, entertainment, flowers, marketing, sponsorship, wine and coordinating and supporting the huge number of parents who contributed so much to this event both in time, effort and financially - the flower team, the creative team, the local fundraising team, the tree of temptation team, the auction display team and all the school staff who volunteered to work on the night. A huge thank you to everyone who helped or attended the Ball and made it such an outstanding success.

A stunning hard back photographic record of the Ball is available and can be ordered at www.blurb.com (search on 'St Catherine's Ball 2nd edition).

Individual photographs may be purchased from ImageBank which is accessed via the school website using the password: midleton