Saturday night was one of the most incredible celebrations I have ever been part of. It was a celebration of the oncology nurses of Princess Margaret and really of nurses everywhere. Significantly, it was also a celebration of the storied life and times of the founder of the Brazilian Ball, Ms Anna Maria de Souza. We have been planning the Brazilian Ball for a year and we were not disappointed by the outcome Saturday night. I went down to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre before lunch on Saturday with my bike and my riding gear as I was halfway through a training ride for our upcoming Ride to Conquer Cancer. The security guard let me in with my bike and I proceeded down to the convention level. When I entered the room where 1,800 guests would be gathering in five short hours, I couldn’t believe what I saw. The huge room was totally transformed by the staff who work on the Brazilian Ball every year. The three chairs of the Brazilian Ball – Martha Shaw, Shirley Domelle and Holly Miklas, had done a superb job organizing every aspect of the Ball. Mr. Ivan de Souza had a very emotional day as he remembered his wonderful Anna but Ivan was a pillar of strength for this year’s Ball. We invited 100 nurses and their guests to attend the Ball this year as well as guests like Minister George Smitherman, the Campbell Family (Linda, Gaye and Susan and their family and friends), and many members of Toronto’s business, medical, social, and artistic scene. The vibe at the Ball was electric from start to finish. Premier McGuinty addressed the Ball in a video where he spoke from the heart about supporting cancer nurses at Princess Margaret and across Ontario. The Premier also spoke fondly about Anna Maria de Souza and her impact over the past 42 years. The Honorary Chairs, Neville and Lorraine Kirchmann and Jim and Bridgette Kinnear, helped lead the procession to open the evening. The Brazilian dancers were a sight to be seen and were incredibly gorgeous in their costumes (and in some cases, their near total lack of costume). The volunteers from PMHF were many and the volunteers at the Ball helped make the evening come off flawlessly. Of special note, is the work of Lynn Douglas and Wendy Howze from PMHF. They worked tirelessly on making this an historic success. The Ball raised a total of $22 million for the oncology nursing program at PMH and for oncology nurses across the province. In partnership with Cancer Care Ontario, the UofT, and other nursing organizations, the “Anna Maria de Souza Knowledge Transfer Centre for Oncology Nursing” is now established. The $15 million from the Province of Ontario to set up this centre is a huge lift to cancer nurses across Ontario. We are incredibly grateful to Premier McGuinty and Minister Smitherman for the support of oncology nursing.

The $22 million raised around this year’s Brazilian Ball is an historic accomplishment. It is one of the top fundraising galas or dinners to be held in Canada and will go down in the history of philanthropy in Toronto as one of the great nights of the year. I thought often of the wonderful Anna Maria de Souza and especially her last month in Princess Margaret as she was treated for her terminal cancer. Her spirit lives on in this event and everyone who knew her is grateful for the 42 years of leadership she has given to worthy causes across Ontario. The Princess Margaret is one of the top 5 cancer research centres in the world and has a very bold ambition to conquer cancer in our lifetime. It is incumbent on all of us who share this ambition to ensure the Princess Margaret has the funds to support doctors like Ben Neel, Tak Mak, Mary Gospodarowicz, David Jaffray and many others.

Finally, the support of the Campbell family (Linda, Gaye and Susan) is instrumental to our success.