The Camellia Ball held its 58th annual ball on Saturday, December 21, 2024, at the Forest Lake Club. Eleven debutante daughters and thirteen guest debutantes were presented.
The Camellia Ball’s president, Mr. Silas Calhoun McMeekin III, and Mrs. McMeekin received members and guests at a reception in the ballroom to music provided by harpist, Mrs. Clarke Chandler McNair, prior to the ball. Following the reception, Mr. Benjamin Edward Grimsley presented the 2024 debutantes with introductions.
The presentation of the 2024 debutantes was followed by the debutante figure, gracefully led by Miss Gretchen Marsh McMeekin, followed by Miss Harriott Ravenel Finlay. Miss Gretchen Marsh McMeekin, daughter of Silas Calhoun McMeekin III and granddaughter of Silas Calhoun McMeekin, Jr., was presented by her father and was escorted by Mr. Matthew Sebastian Miller. Miss Harriott Ravenel Finlay was presented by her father, Mr. Kirkman Finlay III, and escorted by Mr. Wesley Harris Jackson.
Next to make their debuts were Miss Lillian Grace Angel, presented by her father, Mr. Christopher Brent Angel, and escorted by Mr. William Brown Bennett; Miss Elloise Troup Bethea, presented by her father, Mr. Robert Partridge Bethea, Jr., and escorted by Mr. John Thomas Lay III; Miss Sanders Lilla Bethea, presented by her father, Mr. Robert Partridge Bethea, Jr., and escorted by Mr. John Patrick Keating II; Miss Chrismon Elisabeth Clark, presented by her father, Dr. William Lloyd Clark, and escorted by Mr. Oscar Woodrow Augenstein II; Miss Caroline Elizabeth Caughman Cromer, presented by her father, Mr. Roy Bunyan Cromer III, and escorted by Mr. Brailsford Yates Reynolds; Miss Claire Marie Lewis, presented by her father, Mr. David James Lewis, and escorted by Mr. William Francis Lamar; Miss Anna Elizabeth Malanuk, presented by her father, Dr. Robert Middleton Malanuk, and escorted by Mr. Robert Davis Young; Miss Marilyn Jane Summers, presented by her father, Mr. Boyd Erwin Summers, and escorted by Mr. Jackson Lloyd Reynolds; Miss Anna Courtney Weaver, presented by her father the Honorable Donald Roy Weaver, and escorted by Mr. James Mason Harrington.
Guest debutantes presented were Miss Meredith Coles Buyck, escorted by Mr. James Delk Banks; Miss Carroll Barrett Campbell, escorted by Mr. Duncan McIntyre Moorman; Miss Helen Ellsworth Clarke, escorted by Mr. William Emmet Hough III; Miss Dorothy Grace Davidson, escorted by Mr. Theron Max Childress; Miss Aubrey Jane Grainger, escorted by Mr. Jett Coy Seawell; Miss Elizabeth Hampden Haile, escorted by Mr. William Tilghman Osborne; Miss Rachel Sue McCutchen, escorted by Mr. Houston Thomas Reed; Miss Sarah Helen Irene McNair, escorted by Mr. Davis Myers Newman; Miss Charlotte Elizabeth Peacock, escorted by Mr. Phillips Acker Daniels; Miss Kate Paxton Oliver, escorted by Mr. Jack Ellis Lapin; Miss Elizabeth Elliott Rambo, escorted by Mr. Wade Sullivan Oliver; Miss Laurie Browning Smith, escorted by Mr. Patrick Smith Flynn, Jr.; and Miss Mae Woodward Williams, escorted by Mr. Walker Reed Barrett.
Each debutante carried a beautiful nosegay of camellias, pink roses, white freesia, Queen Anne’s lace, white hydrangeas, green trachelium, wax flower, and pink bouvardia adorned with pink satin ribbons and streamers. Mrs. Julianne Sojourner graciously arranged all of the florals for the event.
Dinner and dancing in the ballroom followed the presentation of debutantes. Dick Goodwin played the figure and the first dance, and Infinite Soul provided music for the remainder of the evening. Following dinner, coffee was served in the foyer. Seated at the head table were the Camellia Ball’s officers. Mr. Silas Calhoun McMeekin III, president, was joined by Mr. Henry Spann Laffitte, Jr., secretary, and Mr. Toby Wayne Goodlett, treasurer. The board members are Mr. William James Kitchens, Jr., Dr. Robert Middleton Malanuk, Mr. Michael Eugene Penland, and Mr. James Roland Rhodes III. The chairmen of the 2024 ball are Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Edward Grimsley, and the co-chairmen are Mr. and Mrs. John Andrew Delaney.
The following chairmen assisted with the ball: Mr. and Mrs. George William Owen, beverage committee; Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Harold Chaplin, Jr., camellia cutting committee; Mr. and Mrs. James Roland Rhodes III, coffee table committee; Mr. and Mrs. Albert Law James IV, debutante committee; Mr. and Mrs. Edward Coke Mann IV, debutante figure committee; Mr. and Mrs. Phillip Allen Johnston, debutante flower committee; Mr. and Mrs. Michael Allyn Rama, debutante mother committee; Mr. and Mrs. David Yates Reynolds, decorations committee; Mr. and Mrs. Jackson Holt Chetwood, house and seating committee; Dr. and Mrs. Bruce McDowell Easterling, invitations committee; Mr. and Mrs. James Fredrick Reames III, menu committee; Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Edward Grimsley, music committee; Dr. and Mrs. Stephen Earl Van Horn, Jr., photography committee; Mr. and Mrs. David James Lewis, publicity committee; Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Read Folline, scrapbook committee; Mr. and Mrs. Everette Steelman Ketchum III, stags committee.
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