Steven Bell, owner of Chapters Hotel and Restaurant, has spoken of his delight after raising in excess of £23,000 at a spectacular Masquerade Ball in aid of the Holistic Cancer Care Centre in Middlesbrough.

A Touch of Class 2009, the fourth annual dinner on behalf of this local charity, was held on Friday 9^th October at Middlesbrough Football Club and was attended by over 200 guests.

A vast array of special prizes were on offer including a Fender Stratocaster signed by Jeff Beck, a Football Mascot experience, a trip to Rome, a cricket bat autographed by all the current Durham County Cricket Club players, tickets to see Manchester Utd vs CSKA Moscow and a chance to be a Racehorse Owner for the Day.  Guest auctioneer, Alistair Brownlee, got the fundraising into full swing, achieving a fabulous result for the charity.

The glitzy event was organised by Sarah Carter of Avenue Events and hosted by radio presenter and charity patron Judie McCourt.  Glamorous X-Factor contestants Trinity gave a great performance and guests danced the night away with the fabulous Stephen Bayliss.  Fundraisers also tried their hand to win an Audi TT and even pushed their luck on the casino tables.

Chapters Hotel & Restaurant kindly sponsored the event, and sponsorship was also received from the house designer wear, Avenue Events, Better Brand Agency, Middlesbrough Football Club, Court Homemakers, Mercury Wealth Management Ltd, Edition of You Photography, The Flower Box, Michael O’Connor Furniture, Teesside Audi, The Print Factory and Boro TV.Cancer patient, Laura Ashurst, touched the hearts of all there by delivering a moving speech which outlined her own experiences and what an important role the Centre has played for her and her family.

Using therapies that complement orthodox cancer treatments, The Holistic Cancer Care Centre supports patients through the physical side effects and emotional roller coaster that experiencing a cancer diagnosis brings.

Steven Bell, Owner of Chapters Hotel and Restaurant, and Patron of the charity said: “I would like to thank everyone who attended Friday’s event and those who very kindly sponsored the event and donated prizes.”

“It was a fantastic evening and a substantial amount of money was raised for the Holistic Cancer Care Centre.”

Heather Goodwill, Manager at the Holistic Cancer Care Centre, said: “The Holistic Cancer Care Centre is thrilled with the success of A Touch of Class. The event raised a vast amount of money for the charity and we are over the moon with the generosity of everyone who attended and showed their support.”

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Steven for his tireless work with the Holistic Cancer Care Centre.  Avenue Events, together with all the many others involved, organised a fabulous event and I hope that everyone who attended thoroughly enjoyed the night.”

For further information about A Touch of Class, to join the mailing list for next year’s event or to enquire about sponsorship and advertising opportunities, contact Sarah Carter at Avenue Events on 01642 724855 or toc@avenueevents.co.uk.

Watch this space for A Touch of Class 2010

In the 4 years, A Touch of Class goes from strength to strength, with previous events having raised over £80,000. With limited tickets available, these exclusive events are not to be missed!

As the event is completely self-financed, we rely fully on sponsorship and donations to fund the event and to maximize our fundraising potential.  In order to create another night to remember, we are always keen to secure additional funding and we would love to hear from you if you are interested in becoming an official sponsor of the event.We do have sponsorship, auction, raffle and advertising opportunities available. Any donations – however small or large – would be very gratefully received.

Alternatively… if you are interested in offering any product, service or talent that could enhance the event and help us to raise funds, please contact us and we would be delighted to include you in our programme of events.

With your help, we can hopefully achieve another impressive contribution towards this extremely worthwhile cause and we thank you very much in advance for any support you may be able to provide

2007 – Middlesbrough Football Club

Podcast from A Touch of Class 2007, Middlesbrough Football Club.