Clay Cooley pushed off his birthday celebration for 24 hours. That was because wife Lisa Cooley in a Lela Rose cocktail dress had scheduled them to attend the extra-social Crystal Charity Ball’s Circle of Angels seated supper at Mary Clare Finney’s estate on Tuesday, October 20.
Alas, the darling hostess Mary Clare, who is known for fashion trend-setting, was again once ahead of the herd. She was upstairs with signs of coming down with the flu.
While Mary Clare took to her bed, a record-breaking crowd of nearly 200 partied downstairs with Deloitte’s Laura and Jason Downing greeting one and all at the front door.
Even before the doors opened at 7 p.m., the driveway was jammed like NorthPark valet parking on Black Friday. In the crowd of luxury vehicles was Cliff Fischer’s hotter-than-hot, brand new BMW with paper plates. One of the valets admitted that the car was so high tech, they weren’t quite sure how to move it.
In the crowd were Annette Simmons and Jerry Fronterhouse, who had given Annette a golf bag with two clubs. He reported that she’s quite a golfer… Tricia George reported that the Fund A Cure luncheon that she’s co-chairing with husband Kenn George is heading toward a sell-out…Judge Glen Ashworth was in from Kaufman with CCB 2016 Chair Christie Carter.
Just when the mansion’s public rooms seemed to be filled to the max, the guests were invited to fabulous tables set up in the backyard for a dinner. The dining started off with Maine lobster and sous vide hen egg ravioli with house-made ricotta cheese, tarragon cream and winter truffles, followed by red chermoula-crusted Mediterranean loup de mer, cardamom-roasted heirloom beets, sun-choke scallion puree and reserved lemon butter sauce. To top off the meal and in keeping with the 2015 Crystal Charity Ball “An Evening of Celestial Radiance” theme, dessert was celestial radiance white chocolate moon with mandarin, gianduja chocolate and brownie “dirt.”
As for Clay, don’t worry about his boo-hooing about the delayed birthday. Upon hearing that Lisa was giving him a new, big belt buckle, he smiled and said he didn’t need anything because he had Lisa.