CanadaPLUS Club celebrates Thanksgiving in style
The Social Scene
with Dylis Jones
The CanadaPLUS Club knows how to throw a good party and the Canadian Thanksgiving dinner at the Miramar hotel was no exception.
Nearly 150 members of the club and their guests had an evening out that wrung praise even from some who like to think of themselves as curmudgeons.
Canadian ambassador Sylvia Cesaratto was on hand to deftly wield the knife for the ceremonial carving of the turkey. In little over a year she has performed the ceremony three times, and is set to repeat it once again on October 26, when she will be the guest of honour (that’s how it’s spelled in Canada) at the usually all male British Colonial lunch at Restaurant Chalet Suisse.(1985)
The Canadian National Anthem, O Canada was rendered in English and French by Opera Panama soprano Graciela Saavedra and tenor Alfonso Baysa and they later entertained the diners with opera arias and a rendition from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera. Baysa delighted the diners as flung himself on his knees before the ladies at the Canadian Embassy tables and then brought Ambassador Cesaratto on stage for the closing bars of the Neapolitan song O Sole Mio which has been wowing audiences since 1898.
The menu, personally chosen by Glen Champion, the Canadian head of the Bern Hotel Group more than lived up to expectations and a tombola with multiple prizes spiced up the evening. Proceeds will go to funding the Carols By Candlelight charity event on December in Casco Viejo. The main prize of two return direct flights tickets to Canada, donated by Copa Airlines will be draw on December 15.
T
A lucky prizewinner who was also celebrating his birthdayhe celebration was completed with dancing to Beatles era music.
As a footnote, an additional touch for the evening was the opportunity for guests to buy poppies to support the Royal Canadian Legion. Poppies are a long standing tradition in the British Commonwealth in the weeks leading up to November
the 11th, commemorating the signing of the armistice ending the First World War.
Poppies which sprouted in the muddy carnage of Flanders, were chosen in Britain as a way to raise funds for wounded servicemen and their families. The tradition has continued ever since, supporting survivors of many conflicts.
The Club, whose membership includes people from 24 countries, including Panama, is now well into planning its next event: "Welcome Back Snowbirds" an annual laying down of the welcome mat for those who spend the northern winter in Panama. It's always a fun event, a chance to meet old friends and make new ones. For tickets and information call 6619-6890 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
