The 26th Annual InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball at InterContinental® Miami

Photography by Alejandro Chavarria, Samuel Rivas, Kyle McLaughlin on November 23rd, 2021 in Celebrity, Galas, Lifestyle

Jennifer Hudson

Miami, FL – November 6, 2021 – On Saturday November 8th, Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida and InterContinental® Miami raised an excess of $2.7 million at the 26th Annual InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball, headlined by acclaimed singer and actress Jennifer Hudson. Actress and filmmaker Gabrielle Anwar made her return as celebrity emcee of the Ball, which was chaired by her husband, philanthropist Shareef Malnik. The theme of the annual fundraiser was “Galactica,” inspired by pop culture, vintage sci-fi films, and space science. The space theme was conceptualized by the Ball’s Creative Director Maxwell Blandford and creatively translated by DECO Productions. The official after-party, the InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Nightclub presented by E11EVEN Miami, Downtown Miami’s 24/7 ultra-club, was held immediately following the Ball at InterContinental® Miami, and was headlined by Ja Rule.

Welcoming guests to the 26th Annual InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball were Shareef Malnik, Chairman Emeritus, Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida; Gala Chair of the InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball; Managing Partner, Greyhawk Capital; and CEO, Forge Legacy Investments; Glenn Sampert, Gala Host and General Manager of InterContinental® Miami; and Norman Wedderburn, President and CEO of Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida – the trio affectionately known as the “Three Amigos.”

Donors and notables attending the InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball included Shareef Malnik & Gabrielle Anwar; Al & Nancy Malnik; Karolina Kurkova & Archie Drury; Jamal & Bailey Mashburn; Lisa Hochstein; Kiki Barth; Romero Britto; Alberto Carvahlo; NASA astronaut Loren Acton; Kelly Marcel; Lee Brian Schrager; Barry Skolnick; Ken DeGori; Tatsiana Ansin; Marina Armas; Nick & Adriana Ayala; Greg & Brenda Baty; Gal Bensaadon; Peter & Tatiana Cancro; Gala Cohen; Dennis Crowley & Maria Haupert; Brian Exelbert; Mayte Fernandez; Richard & Susan Finkelstein; Eugene & Brooke Frenkel; Gary & Amber Godsey; Ken Gorin; Scott Helms; Felipe Lafratta; Michael Liebowitz; Sydney Lister; Patrick & Mary McClain; Belkys Nerey; Michael & Caroline Parrish; Joseph Perez; Danielle Rubinstein; Ken Russell; Helen, Jacob and Kevin Schwartz; Jodi Siravo; Caitlin Stella; Dave Strom; Angie Valdes; Devon Vickers; Frances Wang; Richard & Robin Weissman; and Judd & Laura Zebersky.

Committee members of the InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Nightclub, which is produced by Maxwell Blandford, Ken DeGori, and Clif Loftin, are: Shareef Malnik; Ken DeGori, Vice Chairman, InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Nightclub; Maxwell Blandford, Creative Director of InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Ball and Co-Chair of InterContinental® Miami Make-A-Wish® Nightclub; Michael Capponi, Co-Chair; Nick D’Annunzio, Co-Chair and Ball committee member; Clif Loftin, Co-Chair; Gus Munoz, Co-Chair and Ball committee member; Tara Solomon, Co-Chair and Ball committee member; Nicholas Zazzera, Co-Chair and Ball committee member; Antonio Misuraca; Violet Camacho; Louis Fonseca; and Robert Fernandez.

As the Ball’s 26-year partner, founder, and in-kind donor, InterContinental® Miami has contributed through in-kind donations to Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida that have enabled the organization to raise more than $32 million, resulting in more than 6,300 wishes being granted to children with life-threatening medical conditions in the chapter’s region, which includes South Florida, the Treasure Coast, southwest Florida, the Sarasota area, and Tampa Bay.