Al and Nancy Malnik, Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida Lifetime Benefactors, hosted their annual Garden Party on Sunday, April 26, 2015. The private affair, held at their Palm Beach County oceanfront estate, celebrated the 21st anniversary of the InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball, taking place on November 7, 2015. Shareef Malnik, Gala Chairman and proprietor of The Forge Restaurant | Wine Bar, announced this year’s theme will celebrate the mystical world of Mythology. In 2014, the InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball raised a record high of $2.5 million, which helped grant 500 wishes. In the event’s 20 year history, the InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball has granted over 3,500 wishes, and raised $16.8 million, of which The Malnik Family’s unprecedented gift of $1 million to Make-A-Wish Southern Florida remains the single largest contribution to the charity. As the Ball Founder, 20-Year Partner and In-Kind Donor of Make-A-Wish Southern Florida, the InterContinental Miami is more than just a venue, and continues to play a pivotal role in the planning and execution of the Ball. Notable event attendees Robert Hill, Gala Host and InterContinental® Miami General Manager, with wife Breda Hill; Norman Wedderburn, CEO and President of Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida; actress and filmmaker Gabrielle Anwar, who has graced the InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball stage for the past five years as celebrity emcee; Maxwell Blandford, Vice President of The Forge Restaurant | Wine Bar; Adriana De Moura, star of “The Real Housewives of Miami,” with husband Frederic Marq; television personalities Fabian Basabe and James Davis; and Miami socialites Linda Levy-Goldberg, Danny and Meryl Weiss, and Alison Zhuk. Additional attendees included Chairman’s Society Members Geert-Jan and Joyce Bakker, Robin Levinson, Todd and Kim Glaser, and Richard Polidori; Make-A-Wish Southern Florida Board of Directors Jamie Elias, Jill Johns and Jodi Siravo; InterContinental Miami executives Mike Kovensky, Director of Sales and Marketing; Christine Corson, Director of PR and Marketing; and Hugh Anderson, Regional Director of Operations for IHG Florida and wife Sheila Anderson. The alluring event featured delicious bites, refreshing bubbly and the musical sounds of one-of-a-kind violinist and DJ, Timothee Lovelock. The event concluded with an eloquent and heartfelt speech by Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida wish recipient Ian Sallee, whose wish to take a family trip to Naples, Italy was granted in September 2014, not only changing his life, but that of his family’s, forever.
ABOUT MAKE-A-WISH® SOUTHERN FLORIDA – Since 1983, Make-A-Wish Southern Florida has granted more than 10,000 wishes to children who have life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength, and joy. The nonprofit organization serves families in Palm Beach, St. Lucie, Martin, Broward, Collier, Glades, Hendry, Highlands, Indian River, Lee, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Okeechobee counties and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It receives no federal or state funding and raises money to grant wishes through corporate sponsorships, special events, foundation grants, and individual contributions. The Southern Florida chapter grants a wish every 16 hours, every day of the year, at an average cost of $5,000. For more information, to make a donation, volunteer or refer a child, contact Make-A-Wish at (888) 773-WISH or log on to www.sfla.wish.org.
ABOUT INTERCONTINENTAL® MIAMI: Celebrating 30 years as an icon of the Downtown Miami skyline, the InterContinental® Miami is located at the crossroads of Miami’s Business and Arts & Entertainment districts. A beacon for business and leisure travelers alike, the hotel rises 34 stories over the city with breathtaking views of the Atlantic Ocean, Biscayne Bay and the Port of Miami. The hotel features 641 luxury guest rooms, including 34 suites and two presidential suites designed by Venus William’s V Starr Interiors; 35 meeting rooms with over 101,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting and exhibition space, including a spectacular Grand Ballroom; multiple food and beverage outlets – Toro Toro, ¡Ole!, Bluewater, Table 40 and the hotel’s interactive digital arts lobby lounge; full-service fitness center and spa at mySpa Miami; and rooftop pool deck with gardens. The InterContinental Miami is a proud corporate citizen of the Miami-Dade community, invested through its annual InterContinental Miami Make-A-Wish Ball, and its corporate social responsibility program. For more information or reservations, call 305-577-1000 or visit www.icmiamihotel.com.
