Casita Maria Fiesta! Gala Kickoff
When the bold and beautiful get together for a good cause, the event is spectacular. The Casita Maria Fiesta! Gala kickoff was held at the Carolina Herrera Flagship Madison Avenue store on the evening of September 18th in New York City.
This year’s black-tie gala to benefit Casita Maria Center for Arts & Education honors philanthropist Lucy Doughty, Carolina Herrera Creative Director Wes Gordon, and gallerists James J. Borynack and Adolfo Zaralegui of Wally Findlay Galleries International. The annual gala will honor the industry leaders’ outstanding leadership and contributions to business, philanthropy, and culture.
“Carolina Herrera is one of our earliest honorees and longest supporters”, said Board Chair Jacquline Weld Drake. “The fashion house is one of the most prestigious Latino brands in the world. Honoring Wes is honoring our past and our future, as well as Latin culture.”
Ladies were swooning over the designer’s clothes and accessories with champagne cocktail flutes in hand, climbing the second and third floors to see the collection.
On the second flight, an Andy Warhol portrait of Carolina Herrera beckoned you to the third floor, where VIP fittings happen and the evening wear presented like art.
Board Members George Corton, Ben Rodriguez-Cubeñas, Sissi Fleitas-Refaie, Michéle Gerber Klein, and Darlyn Portes greeted friends and supporters.
The cocktail party guests Steven M.L. Aronson, Edgar Batista, Candace Bushnell, Lady Liliana Cavendish, Amy Fine Collins, Jennifer Fischer, Susan Gutfreund, Sharon King Hoge, William Ivey Long, Fern Mallis, Muffy Aston Potter, Marc Rosen, Mary Snow, Daisy Soros, Christopher Walling — sipped on champagne and tried on gowns and jewelry, with partial sales benefiting Casita Maria.
Casita Maria Center for Arts & Education, the oldest Latin charity in New York City, provides high-quality arts education to over 1,000 students each day. Located in the country’s poorest district, the South Bronx, Casita Maria creates a safe, welcoming community for youth and families, producing well-rounded individuals who fulfill their dreams.
Jacquline Weld Drake and HRH Prince Dimitri of Yugoslavia will chair the splendid evening benefit on October 21st at the iconic Plaza Hotel in Manhattan.
The 90-year-old nonprofit Casita Maria Center for Arts and Education will celebrate a big anniversary. Casita Maria Fiesta! Gala will be the grandest benefit soiree of 2024, with a cocktail hour, elegant sit-down supper, and dancing to the Latin music of a live band. Feliz Fiesta!
