A glamorous ball has raised over £3,000 for Mia's Appeal for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.
Staged at the Begelly Arms Hotel, the event was organised by Chris and Merilee Phillips, of Templeton, whose two-year-old daughter Mia suffers from the disease.
The evening was called the Sixty Five Roses Ball after an expression which first originated in Australia when a child was asked to say cystic fibrosis, and the response sounded more like 65 roses.
The room was decorated in pink, Mia's favourite colour, and on the tables were roses, jars of pink sweets, and straws, which Chris, in his welcome speech, asked everyone to breath through for a minute whilst holding their noses, to experience what breathing is like for a CF sufferer. Each guest was also given a bag of sweets as a thank you gift from Mia.
Following a Bucks Fizz reception, guests tucked into a sumptuous dinner, before relaxing and enjoying an auction of prizes, prior to sensational live music by the Jameston Jammers and Barry's Disco.
The auction raised the excellent sum of £903, and among prizes auctioned were a day's hire of a two- ton mini digger with driver (donated by D. and K. Plant Hire); one month's membership at leisure facilities for a family of four (donated by Swallow Tree Gardens); 12 months single membership (donated by Martin James Health Club); Spa Leisure Suite membership (donated by Heywood Mount); Three-course Sunday lunch for two people (donated by The Bridge Restaurant, Narberth), together with other prizes pledged on the night.
Eight bottles of Bucks Fizz were also later auctioned in a Dutch-style auction, led by Neil Thomas, which added a great deal of humour to the evening, with Chris being chased around the room by a group of women keen to be the last bidder to win. In addition, a raffle was held, which topped over £1,000, the first prize being a £500 voucher for MFI Haverfordwest, donated by Chris.
"The evening was a huge success and ended just as Mia would have liked with lots of people dancing and generally having a good time," said Merilee.
Chris and Merilee acknowledge the support of the following: Chevron Texaco Ltd; Martin James Health Club; Swallow Tree Gardens; Heywood Mount Hotel and Spa Leisure Suite; Mark Norman, D. and K. Plant Hire; Bethan Jones Hughes who gave support on the day and helped in decorating the room, making it look so lovely; The Bridge Restaurant, Narberth; MFI, Haverfordwest; Gareth John and Sara Howell; Cleddau Insurance who donated the Bucks Fizz; Jameston Jammers and Barry Ormond who donated their time free of charge; Begelly Arms Hotel; Simon Phillips and Craig Sutton, the doormen who donated their time free of charge; Asda, Pembroke Dock; Tescos, Pembroke Dock; Heatherton; CRS, Kilgetty; Dimond Press; Focus; Obsession, Pembroke; The Mulberry Restaurant, Saundersfoot; Steve Williams; Rory Howells who donated a Cardiff Blues framed autographed shirt to the auction; Ann and Dai The Butcher who donated the bags for the sweets; everyone who sold and bought raffle tickets; the LVA; together with their family, friends and colleagues.