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Another Casa de Campo holiday season has come and gone, and with it came a fine procession of visitors, events and exciting developments for the Casa de Campo resort—not least the opening of two new restaurants (SBG, Sofias Bar & Grill and Pubbelly Sushi) in the Marina Casa de Campo. Yet the jewel in the Casa de Campo holiday crown was once again, as it has been for the last 24 years, the Cartier Benefit.
Hosted by Emilia and J.Pepe Fanjul at their oceanside Casa de Campo estate, Casa Grande, guests were welcomed at sunset with live music and a glass of Cartier champagne served in an elegant wooden living room overlooking the ocean. A space that on this occasion had been elegantly transformed into the Cartier Boutique, complete with a tableau of Cartier models, a vintage black and white backdrop, and of course the boutique showcasing the very best of Cartier jewels and watches, including the Clé de Cartier watch, so named for its unmistakable resemblance to a key, or “clé” in French.
As guests sipped the champagne and perused the jewels, they made their way onto the outside starlit terrace to await the thrill of the live auction. Having decided last year to eliminate the silent auction from the proceedings, the live auction, with J.Pepe Fanjul himself as the animated auctioneer, once again took center stage.
Live auction items included unique travel experiences across the world, to far and away destinations such as Vietnam, with flights donated by jetBlue Airways.
Next year celebrating its 25th anniversary, the Cartier Benefit has over the years raised in excess of US$2 million dollars, a sum divided equally between the Fundación MIR and Hogar del Niño charities, both causes whose goal is to provide a better future for the greater La Romana community through education.
Following the auction, dinner guests were invited to pass through to the tropical garden, where a wonderful buffet style dinner was enjoyed under the stars. The evening ended with music and dancing—to popular latino rhythms; Merengue, Bachata and even Salsa.
Both the Fundación MIR and the Hogar del Niño have their annual fundraising celebrations coming up soon – the Fundación MIR Magical Splendor on Saturday January 23 at Casa Grande, sponsored by luxury American department store, Saks 5th Avenue, and will feature a fashion show with Naeem Khan (click here for details), meanwhile the Hogar del Niño Weekend will take place on Friday and Saturday the 12th and 13th of February. So save the date and we hope to see you all at both celebrations!
The following collection of photos were taken by Alejandro Heredia during the Cartier Benefit 2015, at Casa Grande, Casa de Campo:
