Suffolk News-Herald

Next Saturday night, Cedar Point Club will be aglow with the glitz and glamour of the &uot;Eighth Annual Folly Ball.&uot; This special event was planned as a fund raiser for Riddick’s Folly, Suffolk’s premier historic home, and the ball will offer all the best in elegance, excitement and gourmet quality foods.

The Folly Ball is Riddick’s Folly primary fundraising event, and will be held in the Cedar Point Club on Route 17. The festivities begin with cocktails being served at 7:30 p.m., and the dinner, dancing and fun continues until midnight.

The planning committee, headed by Becky Anderson, and members of the Riddick’s Folly Board of Directors, met Thursday at the Folly, located on Main Street. They were there to check out the beautiful keepsake programs which are being printed up for those who attend the event.

Sara Ann Johnson, president of the Riddick’s Folly board of directors was there along with Advertising Chairwoman Donna Davis. Robin Rountree, executive director of Riddick’s Folly, joined the group along with board members Margaret Smith, Juanita Barnes and Sean Bilby.

Anderson said this event is definitely a party for all ages, with gentlemen and their ladies ranging in age from the early 20s to their 80s and 90s attending.

And speaking of &uot;Gentlemen and their Lady;&uot; that is exactly who will be performing at this year’s festive ball.

&uot;They play a good mix of music for dancing and listening enjoyment,&uot; said Anderson. &uot;There is also the Silent Auction that always provides lots of fun and some great buys for everyone attending. This year, we have 38 fabulous items up for bids.&uot;

The silent auction takes place when the festivities move into the Godwin Room at Cedar Point. The last silent auction provided funds for the Folly to have 5,000 information brochures printed for the historic home.

This year, bidders will have some extraordinary items offered to them beginning with glittering jewelry from D.B. Bowles Jewelers. Some lucky bidder will also walk out with reservations for six at the famous Riddick’s Folly. The dinner will be catered and the board members will serve the special meal.

Those are only two of an extensive and exclusive list of items that will generate proceeds for the Folly.

&uot;Monies raised from the Folly Ball will go towards the maintenance and further restoration of Suffolk’s only house museum,&uot; said Johnson. &uot;The success of this annual event is due to the extraordinary community support for the Folly Ball.&uot;

Proceeds from last year’s event were used to purchase a new computer for the office and to complete refurbishment of the back parlor with an exquisite mahogany Empire table and a rare lyre-back Empire chair. Plans are also under way to period appropriately faux finish the central passage.

The proceeds from this year’s ball will help to continue moving Riddick’s Folly forward in the new millennium.

Participants at the Folly Ball will also receive a beautifully crafted keepsake book for the event. Virginia Graphic Design (VGD) and Copico’s Darren Schultz created the graphics for the ball with VGD creating the keepsake book. Inside that book is information about the Mills Riddick’s historic home, called a &uot;folly&uot; by those who watched the unique Greek Revival home as it was under construction in 1837.

The keepsake book also contains the advertisements from sponsors who support the Folly with contributions on four levels.

A Platinum Donation of $1,500 to $2,000 entitles the donor to six Folly Ball tickets, a full-page advertisement, listing in the program and also on the sponsor’s board that will be prominently posted at the ball.

The Gold and Silver sponsorships also receive four or two, respectively, ball tickets, the full-page ad, and listings. The Bronze sponsorship for $250-$499 donors, includes the benefits without the free tickets.

Those who would like to be a &uot;Friend of the Folly&uot; may make a contribution and be recognized in the keepsake program.

Tickets for the ball are $60 per person with reservations required. Wednesday at 5 p.m. is the cutoff date for tickets and reservations. To make a reservation, call Robin Rountree at 934-1390.