Water Ball Provides Thundering Support
Last month, amidst an afternoon thunderstorm that drenched the majority of our vendors and volunteers, Charleston Waterkeeper held the second annual Water Ball. Charlestonians of all ages and backgrounds arrived at the South Carolina Aquarium to help celebrate our fundamental right to clean water.
Guests at the second annual Water Ball: (left to right) Keith Sauls, Cyrus Buffum, Whit Smith.
Entropy Ensemble’s dynamic jazz trio welcomed guests as they arrived, while sangria and specialty cocktails flowed and attendees perused silent auction items. JeffET kept guests dancing until late in the evening, while they noshed on raw oysters on the half shell from Clammer Dave, tasty bites from Cru Catering and other decadent treats courtesy of WildFlour Pastry.
Guests gather at the second annual Water Ball to celebrate their fundamental right to clean water. Photo by King Street Studios.
In total, more than 300 guests attended in support of Charleston Waterkeeper and over $15,000.00 was raised to benefit the organization and its efforts to protect and preserve the Charleston Harbor Watershed. These funds will be used to support the organization’s two newest initiatives: the industrial polluter review program and the water quality monitoring program.
Just as last year, our friends at Olive Productions set up an interactive photo booth, allowing guests to feel as though they were actually on the water.
Jose Daniel Hernandez, Karalee Nielsen, and Harriett Lee take a ride in OlivePro's photo booth.
The message of the evening was a simple one:
As citizens of the Lowcountry, we
CELEBRATE
our fundamental right to clean water with every rod we cast, every wave we ride and every sip of water we drink.
It is our responsibility to
EDUCATE
each generation to stand accountable for their impact on our most precious natural resource and
ADVOCATE
for fishable, swimmable, drinkable waterways. We are all defenders of this right.
WE ARE ALL WATERKEEPERS.
Founder Cyrus Buffum with Water Ball guests: (left to right) Mr. and Mrs. Creighton Barrett and Mr. and Mrs. Ben Bridwell. Photo by King Street Studios.
This year’s Water Ball was made possible through the partnership of amazing local businesses and individuals including Event DRS, ICEBOX, Cru Catering, Sideshow Press, Limelight Custom Sign Company, Roots Ice Cream, Clammer Dave, WildFlour Pastry, PDA, Entropy Ensemble, JeffET and many more. We give our sincerest thanks to those who helped make this year’s event a complete success. For a full list of our sponsors, click here.
Also, a special thanks to our guests and volunteers! You guys made it all happen!
With help from social media and all those in attendance, the event was well documented as it unfolded. Check out the evening’s social media timeline here >
Whether or not you were able to make the Water Ball, I hope that the evening’s mantra resonates with each of you – that you will carry this with you every time that you are out on the water, reach to turn on the faucet, or reel a fish out of a creek. Water is a resource that we can’t afford to jeopardize. It is our responsibility to see that it is protected.
For complete albums of event photos, please visit the following links:
King Street Studios (official photo sponsor)
Charleston Magazine and the City Paper also published great reviews from the event.
