God, AIDS, Africa & HOPE

Reflections / Gedanken

The “Ball of HOPE” joy – please join in…

Indeed, there is much joy in the hearts of those organizing the Ball of HOPE for the 20th time. After 2 years of cancellations due to Covid-19 it looks good for the 21st of May 2022 at the Westin Hotel by Marriott in Cape Town.

20 years Ball of HOPE, the end of the 20 years anniversary year of the organisation itself and the better late than never celebration of 20 years of the local office of the Southern African – German Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The Ball of HOPE developed out of a dinner-dance established in 1998 at the Mount Nelson and organised by the German-speaking Catholic Community in Cape Town. The first guest of honour was Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He also introduced the culture of letting culinary chefs be in pain keeping the main course hot and tasty, while speeches are indeed longer than anticipated.

The first guest of honour: Archbishop Desmond Tutu

With the opening of the local office of the AHK in Cape Town, the dinner-dance became the “Ball of HOPE” in cooperation between the newly founded organisation HOPE Cape Town and the Chamber of Commerce. In 2003 the Westin was inaugurated, and the event moved from the Mount Nelson Hotel to the then newly established Arabella Hotel at the Foreshore in Cape Town, which today is the Westin by Marriott.

Opening and blessing of the new Westin Hotel

During the following years, the Ball of HOPE became a fixture in the social calendar of Cape Town, and attracted also visitors from Europe to come and join this prestigious event.

So, yes, we are full of joy to invite all of you to the 20th Ball of HOPE – please come, register and join us in this celebration of service, of commitment and of a partnership between business and development, which changes the lives of people for the better in the last more than 20 years.

Filed under: HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, HOPE Cape Town Trust, SA-German Chamber of Commerce & Industry, South Africa, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , ,

A memory…

Remembering the Ball of HOPE in Cape Town last May
– what a fantastic evening full of fun and laughter, but also reflection on the hard work, the organization HOPE Cape Town is doing as well as the dedication of the Southern African – German Chamber of Commerce & Industry to support trade and knowledge exchange between the respective countries.

If you have missed it – the next Ball of HOPE in Cape Town @ the Westin will be on the 12th of May 2018. Diarize it and make sure to be part of a great social event. But if you can’t wait and you want to support of HOPE Cape Town sooner – there are always lots of possibilities:

 

The HOPE Gala in Dresden on the 28th of October is happening soon and tickets are available via the HOPE Gala‘s web page.

You can donate towards the good cause securely via this web-page link: HOPE Cape Town South Africa (Donation is tax-deductible)

And did you know that we have also sister organisations:

in Germany HOPE Kapstadt Stiftung Germany and the USA HOPE Cape Town USA which all issue tax-deductible receipts.

Filed under: Africa, HIV and AIDS, HOPE Cape Town Association, HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, HOPE Cape Town Trust, HOPE Cape Town USA, HOPE Gala Dresden, SA-German Chamber of Commerce & Industry, South Africa, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Day after the Ball of HOPE

Only people who are also in the business of preparing a gala event know what it means to sit there a day after the event and reflecting on it. All the adrenalin is gone and funny enough one feels drained and somehow empty inside. It seems that all energy is gone but still one cannot find real rest. “Are you happy with the Ball” I was asked several times the next morning, meeting people who slept over at the Westin Hotel and enjoyed their breakfast the very next morning. It sounded to me like a strange question: Yes, of course I was happy that it went without major trouble – all obstacles naturally coming up during such an event were dealt with as soon as Anja and I as the organizers were aware off. And yes, the entertainment program was great and the dance band got the people going – wonderful to see. But it takes at least a couple of days to recover and appreciate all what was happening that very eve. And to digest that for the first time in history, raffle tickets were sold out before all could get a chance to buy some. So amazing…
I am deeply grateful for all of you who joined this annual event on Saturday eve – I hope everybody had a wonderful time, enjoyed our Brooklyn Holy Cross Primary School Senior choir and Chelsea, our 9-year-old singer from Switzerland with her powerful voice , Katlego who did a marvelous job as an MC. And I also hope that you took home the knowledge how you fun that very eve meant hope and life and a future for so many less fortunate in the townships of Cape Town, being troubled by HIV, AIDS and TB and so many associated diseases. All and everybody present made a difference and had a personal impact on the life of somebody whom they never will learn to know in person. What a wonderful and powerful connection…

Filed under: General, HOPE Cape Town Association, HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, HOPE Cape Town Trust, Networking, Reflection, SA-German Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Society and living environment, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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