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ABOUT FINNEGAN BALL

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WHAT IS THE HISTORY OF THE FINNEGAN BALL?

In the late 1920s, Vancouver College’s alumni organized the Annual Winter Frolic, held at the Peter Pan Ballroom in Vancouver on West Broadway. The Peter Pan Ballroom is remembered as one of the last ballrooms to go to for dancing on Saturday nights. 

In 1979, the event was reintroduced as the Vancouver College Annual Dinner-Auction, interchangeably called the Alumni Auction Dinner Dance. The gala, held in the transformed Alumni Gymnasium, was the school’s largest fundraiser of the year that brought alumni and current parents together for a worthy cause.

The “College Auction Committee” organized a variety of silent auction gifts and guests danced to live music by the school band directed by Gordon Olson and later by his son, Larry Olson (VC 1977) and sometimes, other local orchestras and bands.

In 1993, on its 15th anniversary, the Annual Dinner-Dance Auction gala was moved from the school Gymnasium to the Hotel Vancouver. From then, subsequent galas were held off campus at large venue hotels including the Westin Bayshore Hotel, Hyatt Regency Hotel, Sheraton Wall Centre Hotel, Pan Pacific Hotel, and most recently, at the Fairmont Pacific Rim.

In 1999, the gala was rebranded as The Finnegan Ball and has retained this moniker since. It wasn’t until 1958, when the school decided to use “Fighting Irish'' as the moniker for all athletic teams, that Vancouver College adopted a new icon, the Finnegan.  Since then, Finnegan has been Vancouver College’s beloved mascot, decked out in his purple and gold suit. Our spirit is personified by our mascot: the Finnegan. The Finnegan Ball is traditionally held in November (except in 2004 when it was held twice - in February for Finnegan’s Silver Ball and again in November that year). 

In the Spring, Save the Date cards are sent to unveil the theme of the next year’s gala and in the Fall, the coveted tickets sell out year over year. In recent years, creative teams of parents brought to life visions of Winter White, 80s Night, Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, and Hollywood Glam. And sure enough, Vancouver College parents do their homework, arriving each year on point and dressed for the occasion. 

The ultimate parents’ date night, Finnegan Ball seats parents in the same grade or same teams together for a formal dinner and is a fun opportunity to meet and reacquaint with fellow parents. Away from the dinner table, guests dance the night away, pose for a professional portrait, purchase raffle tickets for designer jewellery, bring home a commemorative gift, or bid on one-of-a-kind Vancouver College packages, or sport team memorabilia, among other gifts at the silent auction. 

Each year, however, it is the live auction of the Finnegan Ball that steals the show. Co-hosted by an auctioneer and sometimes the Vancouver College Principal, the auction invigorates the room as spirited parents raise their cards to support their school. In addition to the President’s parking space and holidays in vacation homes, parents also bid to contribute to new mats for the school gym, new bleachers, new football fields and new chairs for the chapel. Perhaps one of the most memorable auction items in Vancouver College history, in 1984, a pig, endearingly named the O’Hagan Pig, was auctioned for $600 and later donated to the Brothers.

Late into the evening, as you leave the Finnegan Ball and descend back down those white steps, a team of parents has begun the clean-up and takedown of the event and you are reminded that each year the Finnegan Ball comes to fruition as the result of legions of fellow parents who chair the event, lead event teams, design the décor, source the centrepieces, staff the coat check, organize the silent auction, and perform cashiering duties, among other tasks. All guests and volunteers are grateful for the mutual sharing of gifts of time and treasure and for contributing towards the success of Finnegan Ball.

In November 2022, after hosting virtual Finnegan Balls in 2020 and 2021, the Centennial Finnegan Ball was held at the Parq Vancouver Hotel, while the 2023 event was held at the Faimont Pacific Rim. Its return was certainly an endeavour to compensate for lost time and our faith and learning community can come together on this special evening in support of our students.  

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