Christmas Dinner - 27th November

 The LC OGA’s annual Christmas fellowship dinner was held on Wednesday, 27th November 2019 at the Shangri-La Hotel, Colombo. The LC OGA chose a traditional Christmas theme for this year’s celebration. The venue was transformed into a Christmas wonderland with stunning décor, including rustically elegant table centerpieces, courtesy of Poru. The event was styled, with meticulous attention to detail, by Sonali Ratwatte.

Guests were treated to Christmas cocktails, including delicious mulled wine, and canapes in the foyer, before the doors of the main ballroom were thrown open to mark the commencement of the evening’s festivities. After the singing of the school hymn and the lighting of the Christmas tree, the President of the LC OGA, Mrs Fathima Aziz, welcomed guests. She spoke of the close-knit LC family whose unity is strengthened by the very fact of the diversity of its members. She highlighted the significance of the choice of the Shangri-La Hotel, Colombo (one of the targets of the Easter Sunday attacks) as the venue of the Christmas dinner, which she hoped would send out a message of indomitable positivity and hope which would resonate not only within the LC community but more widely as well.

Part of the proceeds of the event were donated to Caritas Seth Sarana, with a cheque for Rs.200,000 being presented to Father Ramanayake of Caritas on 21st November 2019 at the Ladies’ College office.

There was something for everyone at this fellowship event which welcomed a cross-section of the Ladies’ College alumni community – Old Girls from 20 years to 90+ years attended this year. Christmas carols led by the LC OGA choir got the guests into the festive spirit of things; a couple of games had everyone on their feet, especially the house game which had the guests cheering madly like they were back at the school sports meet in their beloved Back Garden; the inimitable Voice Print delivered tune after rollicking tune ensuring that the dance floor was never empty; an unprecedented number of fabulous giveaways; Old Girls Devashrie de Silva and Amandhi Caldera delighted guests with their renditions of Christmas carols during the dinner; principal sponsors Spa Ceylon and Cargills, ensured that no-one left empty-handed – guests were treated to a private “market stall” where they were able to choose a selection of Spa Ceylon products, while Cargills ensured that the goody bags were filled to the brim with treats. The Shangri-La Hotel, Colombo pulled out all the stops to serve up a scrumptious Christmas dinner with all the traditional trimmings, culminating in flaming Christmas puddings which were delivered to each table with the mandatory side serving of brandy butter. The evening was compered by the irrepressible Shehara de Silva, who made sure the tone of the event was light and merry with her wonderful banter.

A really marvelous time was had by all present, making all the preparation put in by the Committee over the preceding months well worth the effort.