“I thought it was casual. But, this casual?!”
That’s what one guest said after seeing more than half a dozen women partying in colorful, Christmas-themed pajamas at the 2024 Crystal Charity Ball Chair’s Reception.
A get-together that’s always held the night before the big Ball in a suite at the Hilton Anatole Dallas, the Chair’s Reception traditionally includes executive committee members presenting that year’s chair with a set of new pajamas. The idea is that she’ll enjoy them when she and her spouse spend that night in the suite, anticipating all the next-day hullabaloo.
But at the two-hour reception held at the hotel on Friday evening, December 6, the committee chairs took the pajama idea a step further, at the suggestion of Underwriting Chair Jennifer Dix.
The PJ display was just one of the playful surprises the leadership team had prepared for 2024 CCB Chair Cheryl Joyner, whose Ball theme was “New York, New York Holiday.”
For the second year in a row, the reception took place in the private Anatole apartment once occupied by the hotel’s late First Lady, Margaret Crow. Photos of Margaret with her husband F. Trammell Crow and family were on prominent display in the suite’s office.
In the living room, meantime, the team had prepared a special, oversized red-white-and-green name tag for Cheryl, who’d been so busy talking in recent weeks that her voice had given out. Inside a red heart, the tag read: “I lost my voice … but I am so happy that you are here!”
The ladies didn’t stop there, though.
They also presented the popular chair with a Judith Leiber “NYC Home Base” clutch. Other Big Apple-themed gifts included a cardboard cutout Statue of Liberty sporting a photo of Cheryl’s face that was picture-perfect for photos for guests including Cheryl’s family (brother Ed Lavin and Mark Lavin) and friends Stephanie Lehman and Scott Culpepper).
Finally, the imaginative centerpiece on a table with a generous spread of finger food — meats, breads, cookies, snowflake cupcakes — was a miniature, glittering New York skyline. The handiwork of Fashion Show Chair Kim Hext, the table decor included napkins with the inscription, “I [heart] NY(C).” The C, of course, was short for Cheryl.
It was clear from the event that, after a year of work, Cheryl herself was “hearted” by many.
Cheryl Joyner says
Thank you for publishing this fabulous shoutout to my “Dream Team” of ladies. ❤️ You are always so kind to CCB !!!