Toronto: Valentines Ball 2010 organized by MAC

Rony DSouza, Mississauga

Toronto, 17 February 2010: The walls of Claireport Place Banquet & Convention Centre, Etobicoke reverberated with fireworks, toe tapping and hip swinging music and the enthusiastic cheers of about 400 guests as the Mangalorean Association of Canada (MAC) concluded another successful social event. The band and DJ, Casual Encounter, led by the extremely talented Joyson D’Souza made the event memorable with his contemporary and oldies music and the emcee, Ivan D’Lima created an ambience of vitality, fun and comfort. The event was clearly indicative of what MAC holds true – the strengthening of community and family spirit and supporting humanitarian causes. As a leader in the ethnic community of Canada, MAC organized the Valentines Ball to raise funds for the devastation and havoc caused by the earthquake in Haiti. All proceeds were donated to the Haitian Relief Fund.

The evening began with an innovative firework show initiated by Jay Rajaratnam accompanied by beautiful sari clad girls who served appetizers to each table. Dinner was a spectacular feast fit for a king, scrumptious dessert bar with ambrosia from heaven; dosa bar with steaming freshly made dosas with piquant chutneys and potato masala and a tempting salad bar for the calorie conscious. After dinner, Maxim D’Mello, President of MAC welcomed all the guests and appreciated their participation in this family event. He praised the efforts of the Executive Committee in pioneering new programs throughout the year and applauded the participation of the generous sponsors. Margaret Shankar, General Secretary of MAC gave an inspiring Vote of Thanks and thanked all the individuals who assisted in the success of the event. The main sponsors for the Valentines Ball were Oswald and Doris Saldanha, a golden hearted couple, whose steadfast and unwavering support towards MAC is admirable and greatly appreciated.

The highlight of the evening was a vibrant and amazing Bollywood dance, choreographed and performed by Sidney and Rodney Pinto. Aaron Machado, Nicole Machado, Joshua Lobo, Jennifer Lobo, Amit Shankar, Naomi Shanker, Om Karmalker, Irita Karmalkar also enthralled the audience with their dance to the tune of a medley of songs. In keeping with the theme of the evening, the organizers introduced a novelty dance and coaxed the guests to buy chocolate boxes for novelty prizes. The grand prize for the novelty dance was a ticket to India sponsored by Etihad Airways. The attractive door prizes and other novelty prizes prompted the guests to buy many chocolate boxes to increase their odds at winning.

MAC expresses its genuine gratitude to the guests who attended the Valentines Ball despite commitments and busy schedules. MAC recognizes and appreciates the collaboration, support and assistance of the evenings’ well-wishers and sponsors. MAC acknowledges and applauds the support, commitment and dedication of all its members and volunteers who worked hard to organize an event of this magnitude.