Last Friday, 15th August, marked the 20th anniversary of The Million Dollar Lunch, and the celebration was nothing short of spectacular, raising over $2.2 million for childhood cancer research, world-class clinical care, and essential support for families.
Thanks to the remarkable generosity of The Million Dollar Lunch community, along with the Crown Resorts Foundation and Crown Melbourne, the event has successfully raised over $31 million for the Children’s Cancer Foundation over the past two decades.
This year, Crown’s Palladium was elegantly transformed into a Roaring 20’s setting – an appropriate theme for the 20th anniversary – featuring a menu inspired by the vibrant era. The glamour of the 1920’s was on full display, with a captivating Gatsby-like ambience, while nostalgic tributes to past event highlights added a heartfelt touch.
Seasoned professional and friend of the Foundation, Hamish McLachlan returned as host this year, captivating the 630 guests in the room with a lively auction and clever humour throughout the afternoon.
The Hon. Jaala Pulford, Chair of the Children’s Cancer Foundation, expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the generosity of the event’s cornerstone partners Crown Resorts Foundation, Encore, Lexus of Blackburn, Virgin Australia and NBL. In conversation with Hamish, she highlighted two significant initiatives that the funds raised would support: the establishment of a procedure and recovery room within The Royal Children’s Hospital Children’s Cancer Centre and a new national fertility preservation service for children with cancer.
Sheila Patel and her daughter Maya Oldroyd shared their story with the room, detailing Maya’s battle with an aggressive cancer and the lasting health challenges she continues to face as a result of her treatment. Their heartfelt speech moved guests, and prompted VRC Chairman, Neil Wilson to take the extraordinary step of gifting his major raffle prize win of the day – the Lexus LBX Luxury – to Sheila and Maya.
Emmy Award Winner and three-time Grammy nominee Toni Childs dazzled with an unforgettable performance of her hits ‘Lift’ and ‘I believe in you’. While up and coming star Lotte Gallagher, fresh from her sold out headline show, wowed guests with her brilliance.
The live auction was expertly led by Nicholas Brookes from Marshall White, featuring 15 exclusive, once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Items included an ultimate F1 adventure, a luxurious seven-night cruise aboard MS the World generously donated by Gina Rinehart, an intimate dinner with Michelin-starred French chef inside Christofle’s brand new flagship boutique and two luxury getaways from Morris Escapes.
Another stand out moment was the Holloway Diamond Draw, where one lucky attendee took home a 1.02 carat natural round brilliant diamond, along with a private design consultation to create their dream piece of jewellery!
