Jamaicans and foreign diplomats came to say goodbye to Heidi and Daniel Pepa of the Argentinian Embassy on Thursday night.
Chester Francis-Jackson, Contributor
DAAHLINGS, IF and when y'all hear the proclamation: 'It's lonely at the top', take time to absorb this sage affirmation, as indeed, this saying is more than quite correct!
Picture the rich and famous, as well as the powerful and their anxieties! Not knowing just exactly what the motives are of those who befriend them. Or those who praise their work and or contribution or generally fawn over them. Indeed, it is most definitely not the life for the faint of heart, or the thin in skin!
Reserve your strongest sentiments however, for the friends of the all-powerful and or the rich and famous. Theirs is the enviable task of living above reproach, in the friendship of those so blessed with the bounties and largesse of this life.
THE DILEMMA
Imagine, my dears, the dilemma of the friends of the wealthy agonising over each wedding anniversary, birthdays, Christmas and other holidays. Imagine them wondering just what present to give someone who ostensibly has everything he/she wants. And if they do not have it, probably thinks it's because it is not worth having! Well, life's like that, and beautifully so! As ours is not the task to divine why, simply just to enjoy the bounties of the gods and their blessings!
Now, add to the spectre of wealth the fact that the wealthy we are talking about is an 'outsider' and y'all know that here the problems are amplified as the universal tendency is to treat all outsiders with more than an average dosage of suspicion! When the outsider, however, comes from another country altogether, and is not only fabulously wealthy, but has also acquired the single largest debt portfolio on the island, and consequentially a lot of people in hock to you, then y'all know, that indeed, yours is even a more precarious situation. Socially then you are not necessarily greeted as a friend, but as a possible corporate raider, to be feared and viewed with active suspicion!
Anyway such was the playing-field, when Texan ranching millionaire Dennis Joslin arrived in Jamaica, three years ago! Two Mondays ago, however, the swaggering Texan celebrated his birthday, the question on everyone's' lips however, was not the anxiety that surrounded his arrival here, but just what exactly to give him as a birthday present?
The answer was to throw him a surprise party, to celebrate his birthday!
Now, throwing a surprise party for anyone is always fraught with risks. If those closest to the one to be surprised however, is in on the deal, then the chances of success are, by far, that much greater. There are recent memories of friends getting together and throwing a 'surprise-birthday-party' for one of Kingston's leading Lady of Fabulousness, only to discover on the night of the affaire that she was away, in Negril.
With all of this in mind however, the die was cast.
Now, "A-crowd" socialite and bon vivant, advertising dynamo, Robert MacMillan, does not know how to throw a bad party! Dears, not only are his dos, fabulous shindings, they are prized affairs, with the invitations coveted by all! With MacMillan, fresh from visiting the sprawling Texas ranch of Dennis Joslin and his wife Jane, however, he decided on hosting the 'surprise' do, for the Texan rancher/businessman, at his fabulous St. Andrew residence!
RAINED CATS AND DOGS
Doves, it rained cats and dogs, and then some, on the day and night of the affair! And as y'all know, inclement weather does not make for a good show at parties here! Now imagine, it was pouring in torrents! But then again, that only applies to mere mortals, not the denizens of haute-society! And certainly not to the Grand Master of haute entertaining, Robert MacMillan!
And so it was, that amidst the rain, traffic snarls and all that accompanies Kingston downpours, the specially hand-picked list of invitees, paid nary a mind to the pouring rain. Guests began arriving at 6:30 p.m. to share in the surprise celebrations for Dennis Joslin. And it continued like that until there was a fabulous crush!
Now, there was supposed to be a telephone point man to advise as to the arrival of the guest of honour, a technical slip-up however, made for a lot of drama early in the evening as the rehearsed chorus of surprise, greeted at least two guests, before the birthday celebrant arrived! When he did arrive, it was party time and then some with the affair now taking on the lustre of fabulousness!
THEN IT WAS PARTY TIME
There was no ceremony, only a toast by the host. The Rev. Monsignor Father Richard Albert blessed the birthday cake and the guest of honour responded with a thank you and greetings and then it was party time! No, this was not one of your dance parties! This was primetime, and in between the continuous downpour and the fabulous spread of finger-food prepared by Maree Sigurdsson, guests simply danced the night away!
Luvs, it went way into overdrive and way into the last stages of the night! And fabulously so! Among those out sharing felicitations and the joy of the occasion, included: Hotel tycoon John Issa and his oh so elegant wife Aida Issa; security conglomateur Kenny Benjamin; Security Minister Dr. Peter Phillips and his elegant wife, noted Attorney at Law, Sandra Phillips; Earl Levy; the elegant Jennifer Lim; the beautiful Muna Issa; Chris Nakash and wife, the fabulously preggers, Zein Issa; Michael Campbell; a regal looking Dawn Ritch; Leicester and Belinda Levy; Texas businessman Frank Burnett, who celebrated his birthday the following day; the charmingly elegant Judith Douglas; the lovely Carol MacMillan and her two sons Travis and Elliott MacMillan; John Burrowes and wife Judy Angel Markes; Peter Millingen; Brent Ciurlino and fiancee the ravishingly lovely Dr. Kim Brown; the lovely Janet Farrow; Rupert Bent and his fabulous wife Cindy Breakespeare; Derrick Rose; Patrick Wong and companion Peta-Gaye MacMillan; Jimmy Josephs; the lovely Kayleigh Malcolmson; Howard McIntosh; Chris Mitchell and his fabulous wife Michelle Mitchell; the charming Elaine Williams; Dr. Napoleon Ochoa; Nordia Sinclair; Oswald James; Zillian Bent; Tony and Neive Nunes, visiting from Texas; Brian Rosen, squiring the beautiful Michelle Moodie; the lovely Lisa Marzouca; the beautiful Monique Van Geign; Gabriel Iglesias; Tony Glandorf; Errol and Joslyn Shakespeare; plus a number of others!
GILOU BAUER HONOURED
Dears, some many-many, (nobody's counting) years ago, the charmingly lovely and oh so petite Gilou Bauer, came to Jamaica, from her native France. She thought at the time it was for a visit to another exotic land, for a laid-back holiday! Some almost 35 years later, the lady of haute style and exquisite taste, is still here, having decided on making Jamaica her home. She was buoyed into making that decision, by the sheer and unequalled beauty of the land and the warmth of the people.
Hers has been the faultless style and mode to be first and foremost true to herself, the countries she calls home at any one time or the other, punctuated by the passion to serve. It is Ms. Bauer's belief that it is through true service that we build bridges of understanding and lines of communication.
With this understanding, she identified the arts and culture as being primary avenues in which she could build bridges between the people of her motherland and her adopted homeland. And so, in her early years in Jamaica, she first worked at the French Embassy, then later at the Alliance Francaise de la Jamaïque, here in Kingston, before setting out to actively promote the art and artists of this land in the setting up of the Bay Gallery, over there in Montego Bay.
From her first visit to this land however, and her decision to stay, hers has been the continuing task of promoting artistic and cultural exchanges between both countries. A charge that has seen her initiating many a high profile cultural and educational exchanges between France and Jamaica. A role she further expanded in moving into the area of paintings and sculpting. It was to be her move however to the Mutual Gallery and Art Centre, in the early 90s that led to an expanded role by her in the active promotion of Jamaican art, to her French countrymen, and an introduction of French painters and sculptors to the Jamaican art-loving public.
A faultless hostess with the style and élan known only to the fabulous, the unassuming Gilou Bauer never imagined that in pursuing her pastime and love would bring her to the attention of the French Government. It did however, and so last Tuesday, the French Ambassador Pierre-Antoine Berniard, invited a number of friends and colleagues of the charming curator of the Mutual Life Gallery, Gilou, to attend at the French Embassy for an investiture ceremony and reception. On behalf of the French Government and people, in recognition of her contribution to the arts and literary worlds, the ambassador presented her with the prestigious French Decoration " L'ordre des Arts Et Lettres" .
The occasion was truly a fabulous and oh so rare a moment, witnessing as we were the honouring of one truly deserving of honour and by her own.
