White Lodge Ball

On Saturday 15th February 2020 I attended the White Lodge ball with my Mum and Dad.
The ball was hosted at the lovely Runnymede hotel in Egham, Surrey. Despite storm Dennis’ best efforts to ruin our hair and soak us before we had even arrived at the ball, we made it and arrived just after 7pm. I did my transformation act when I arrived, with this terrible plastic sheet over me and then I whipped it off and ta da…I am converted into a finely dressed young woman!

Hannah with her parents at The White Lodge Ball

We were greeted with champagne or the non alcoholic alternate for me with elderflower presse! We mingled in the bar-lounge area, before being invited into the events room to take our seats at our relevant tables.
The room was beautifully decorated, with red bows on the back of the chairs and red and white petals scattered on the tables, a perfect combination since it was the day after valentine’s day and White Lodge’s colours are red and white!

There were about 20 tables of approximately 9 guests on each table. So just under 200 people in total. There were a huge range of attendees, some include: patrons; trustees; ambassadors; staff and users of White Lodge; fundraisers; supporters and corporate supporters. Several different companies each had their own table.

There was a slideshow of various photos from White Lodge, from the nursery through to adult therapy. Included in the slideshow were photos of me and Team Hannah, from the Superhero tri 2019. It was quite strange sitting there and then seeing a huge photo of yourself flash up on the screen!

We had a lovely four-course meal. It consisted of warm bread rolls with butter, cheese and leek tart with garnish for starter; pork belly on a bed of mash potato, pureed carrots and fine beans for main course; raspberry and chocolate tart, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for dessert and this was followed by coffee and a piece of divine homemade fudge! The meal was delicious. I especially enjoyed the dessert and fudge, however I maybe biased as I have a sweet tooth!

Between courses there was various speeches interspersed. There was a great master of ceremonies, the head of fundraising at White Lodge, a patron and a personal story from an adult who benefits from therapy services at White Lodge, which was very touching.

The dress code was black tie and ballgowns. Everyone looked exquisite and there was some beautiful dresses. My Mum wore a beautiful bronze and black glittery dress to the floor, and my Dad looked extremely smart in his dinner jacket, which was made more special by using his son’s (my brother’s) bow tie.
I spent a long time looking for a dress for the ball but at 6ft 1 inch tall, I couldn’t find one long enough. Finally, I wore my Mum’s beautiful vintage  dress that she had  bought at my age in Harrods sale! My Dad had seen my Mum in it at my age and now me! It was creamy embossed silk. It fitted perfectly! With my old fashioned auburn curls this vintage style dress suited me well. Furthermore, with Little Women being featured in the cinema it seemed even more appropriate! I was lucky that several people said what a nice dress it was and asked where was it from. I am sorry that I don’t think that they are going to able to find one though! It is that annoying thing when someone says that they bought it last season! Although this is more than one!

Hannah at The White Lodge Ball

There was a wonderful magician Matt Stirling, who kept us entertained with a variety of quite incredible tricks.
A live and silent auction, in which the master of ceremonies did a fabulous job encouraging people to bid more for some amazing lots! His and everyones hard work paid off as they raised a staggering £28 000 in total!
There was a lovely photographer (Nicola Ann photography) who captured the night, including these two photos on this blog post.

Lastly, after we had finished eating, the party started! I transferred out of my powerchair and into my manual wheelchair. I then disrupted half the room whilst making my way to the dance floor! We had a dance or in my case a spin, accompanied by the fantastic band 24K.

After a break, drink and nice chat with colleagues of where I am doing my work experience, sporting my SAFOs (splints) and trainers I went back to the dance floor and managed a little dance, or more like sway with my Dad! I used him as my ‘frame’ and with Mum and Dad’s help I managed to stand. Whilst being heavily supported by Dad, I had my arms around his neck and shoulders and he was holding me up around my waist. He swayed a little while I tried to cling on and I did manage a few small steps round. I had practised a little at home with Dad in the lead up to the ball; nevertheless, Dad said he could tell I was tired as I was weighing down much more heavily than when we practised! He was struggling to stay up but was clinging on to me for dear life as he didn’t want me to fall. Nonetheless, I did it and danced (of a form) for the first time in 15 years 🙂 I might have paid for it later, which I certainly did, I never have got the hang of pacing, however I did it.

It was an spectacular night filled with wonderful food, entertainment and fundraising. Well done Sophie for organising such a great event!

Hannah x