Celebrity gala to help moms

FRIDAY, JAN. 6: A gala event celebrating all things luxury will take place next weekend to raise money for premature babies.

The Syncairly Yours Foundation will host Diamonds and Caviar at the Newstead Belmont Hills Golf Resort and Spa on January 14.

The likes of Star Jones, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Kate Gosselin, Salt n Pepa, Lance Gross, Brian White, Holly Robinson Peete and many more are scheduled to attend the gala.

The foundation was set up last year to raise money for uninsured mothers and their premature babies.

Molessia Joynes founded it after her daughter almost died giving birth to her son Syncair in November 2010 when he was just 25 weeks.

Her daughter, Selessia, was flown to Canada with the baby.

She was uninsured and has racked up hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills.

Vice President Lisa Kemper said the event is an excuse to have a night of luxury all while contributing to a worthy cause.

“The event will start at 6:30pm with cocktails. Elit of Stolichnaya Vodka will be featuring their line. It’s usually about $250 a glass.

“We will be pairing caviar to go alongside the vodka so you have a spoon of caviar and a glass of vodka. For dinner, we are pairing wine with the food.  Bristol Cellars will be the major sponsor for the wine.”

The dinner will be a five-course meal with matching wines for each course.”

“Afterwards, we are going to go over and have a live band with dancing”, Ms Kemper added.

During the gala, there will also be a special jewellery showcase with jewellers opening the vaults to display the best of the best of their collections.

In addition to the event, there will also be a Bermuda night on the Friday, January 13 at Newstead from 7pm to 10:30pm.

“It will feature Bermuda culture with little bites of Bermudian foods like peas and rice, codfish balls, macaroni and cheese. Lots of times, people come here and don’t know what Bermuda is about.  This way, they will see.”

 She continued: “Really, the night is about the foundation and raising funds for uninsured mothers and their premature babies. Dinner and dancing is always good but this is a time for people to come out and help the people in the community.

‘The government does what they can but they can’t do everything.”

Asked what she would say to people who would argue women shouldn’t get pregnant if they are uninsured, Ms Kemper said: “When somebody has a premature baby, it still doesn’t cover the incidentals. Premies still need special care whether you’re insured or not. I don’t think the insurance covers everything, I think they do their best in trying to do what they can. You expect that your baby will be whole and lovely and happy.”

The gala is black tie and tickets are $1,000. Seventy per cent of proceeds will go to the Syncairly Yours Foundation. Tickets for the Bermuda Night are $80. For more information, call 599-SYNC (7962).