St Gabriel's "Gift of the Gab" Fun- Raising event
Friday August 27 at Castle Hill RSL
St Gabriel's hitting for a six!
Just on $40,000 was raised from the Gift of the Gab fundraiser held for St Gabriel's School at Castle Hill RSL on Friday night 27th August.
MC was League Legend Steve Edge ably assisted by NRL Official Greg McCallum and the guests were Cricket stars from the NSW Speed Blitz Blues and the NSW Breakers who were on hand to talk sport at the school's major fundraising event. Cricket Legend Doug Walters was there as a guest but soon found himself with microphone in hand on stage!
L to R: Steve Edge; Kathey Freeman; Greg McCallum; Front row: Peter Nevill; Moises Henriques: Ellyse Perry; Alyssa Healy
"At St Gabriel's we teach children with hearing impairment and other special needs such as autism and intellectual disabilities to communicate - so it makes perfect sense to hold an event that promotes the importance of communication, hence the "Gift of the Gab", says Principal Kathy Freeman. "This is the second year for the event, and on the strength of tonight, I think it is well established on the calendar for future years" she adds.
Young international women's cricketers Ellyse Perry and Alyssa Healy both aged only 20, were on the winning team in ICC Women's World Twenty20 Final, in May this year. They sat comfortably on stage and spoke of the thrills of representing their country at such a young age and the challenges of women's sports. Also interviewed was Peter Nevill wicket keeper for the Speed Blitz Blues and Moises Henriques who is also an international cricketer. When asked what they do in the off season…it seems that there is not much of an off season with training already well underway, however cooking was a favourite past time for both the young men.
Steve Edge Parramatta footy legend was the extremely entertaining MC for the fundraiser and Kathy gave thanks to the generosity of the sponsors and the 250 guests on the night, "We are very fortunate to be part of a wonderful community at St Gabriel's and nights like these remind us of the strength of partnership and the power of relationships to work together toward a common goal." said Kathy Freeman. "We achieve so much more than we could alone and share in the joys of these achievements. Tonight is one such joy!"
The night was jammed packed with entertainment for everyone - in addition to the sports stars, comedian & ventriloquist Darren Carr performed and sensational music entertainment was provided by local band Mozaik, sponsored by Inspired Biz Casting.
Edgey with Doug Walters and Greg McCallum
The Inaugural Gift of the Gab was held on Friday 23 October 2009 at Oatlands House and raised just over $24,500 for St Gabriel's School.
