Christmas Party Dec 14 2019: Roundup

On December 14 2019, the Trust held our annual Christmas party in Hampstead, London. With a traditional Christmas dinner, live musical and comedy performances, Christmas carol singing, an auction, a raffle, and a quiz, we celebrated the festive season with over 70 supporters of the Trust and raised nearly £5,200 for very underprivileged girls at the Assunta Primary and Secondary Schools in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

The event started at 6:30PM with a welcome drink on arrival for all our guests. This was swiftly followed by a delicious Christmas dinner of roast turkey and roast ham with all the trimmings, finished off with a combination of British and Malaysian desserts, from mince pies and Christmas pudding to traditional Malaysian sweets.

Martin Jacques, Chair of the Harinder Veriah Trust, began the evening with a Vote of Thanks to our attendees, updating them on the most recent valuable work of the Trust to support girls at the Assunta Schools. He also thanked all those who had, by their hard work, made the evening possible, including, of course, those responsible for the marvellous food and the entertainment, not to mention those who transformed the layout of the flat and provided its seasonal decor.

The first act of the evening was compère Jack Chisnall, whose comedy performances throughout the night expertly guided the audience from one entertainment to the next, leaving them in stitches.

The event’s musical performances were begun by Ravi Veriah Jacques, Harinder Veriah’s son. Accompanied by Debbie Shah, Ravi gave a magnificent recital on the violin.

Then it was the turn of the audience! Led by Peter Jackson, with all his much-loved exuberance and enthusiasm, the makeshift mass choir of over 70 gave perhaps their most memorable performance so far at our Christmas party, with a fine rendering of their favourite Christmas carols.

Next up was a live auction, which contained many exciting lots for potential bidders. With Jack Chisnall acting as auctioneer, we raised £2,300, and lucky winners walked away with tickets to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and the West End première of Sister Act, as well as holidays in North Wales and China.

This was followed by a quiz led by Roman Bamping, which kept the audience on their toes. The raffle draw concluded the night, as lucky attendees went home with a variety of rather fine prizes. The tickets, assiduously sold by Ravi Veriah Jacques throughout the event, raised £600.

The event was a great success and hugely enjoyable, a celebration of both the festive season and the Trust’s work in raising money for the Assunta schools over the past year – not to mention concluding the year’s fundraising with a fantastic sum. Thank you to everyone who attended: we hope to see you at a Harinder Veriah Trust event in 2020.