Una Notte Enthralled Houstonians with A Celebrity Night Out!
The much awaited Annual Una Notte in Italia “celebrity” men’s fashion show was back with glam and celebrity sightings.
With Co-chairs Melissa Holman Juneau and Jennifer Pinkerton and Honorary Chair Debbie Festari they set a record for the gala raising over $438,000.00 on behalf of Children at Risk.
Over 500 guests gathered at the Royal Sonesta Hotel to celebrate this special night. As the guests arrived they viewed beautiful Rolls Royce vehicles from car sponsor Rolls-Royce Motor Cars North Houston and enjoyed a premiere tequila tasting provided by popular Veneno Tequila. There was a premiere silent auction and libations before they headed into the ballroom to enjoy all things Italian! The crowd enjoyed fine wines, great food and of course the highlight of the evening – the philanthropic men and athletes who took to the runway for this wonderful cause. Fabulous fall fashions from Rudy Festari of Festari for Men adorned each gentlemen as they pranced and danced to their favorite song!
Popular Emcee Johnny Bravo and Honorary Chair Debbie Festari spoke to accolades of each gentleman as they walked the catwalk. Some of the participants included Olympic great Carl Lewis, Dynamo stars Zarek Valentin and Tim Parker, Sabercats Rugby player Ken Nasoqeqe, Houston Texas Jonathan Owen and businessmen Chad Pinkerton, Moez Mangalji, Drs. Matthew Brams, Stephen Chen and Bob Sanborn, Jonathan Zadok, Adrian Duenas, Pablo Delgado, Clayton Katz, Hugo Guerrero, Mark Theissen and Al Lindseth to name a few.
As usual there was plenty of face signs, glitter and flowers tossed as the crowd cheered for their favorite “model”. The evening was capped off with the most successful live auction in the event’s history! Top bidders included Gary Petersen, Hallie Vanderhider, Adam Tesanovich, Jose Orihuela, Pete Bell and Lori Hood. Guests closed the night down dancing the night away to the sounds of the lively DJ. Beautiful people in the crowd included Olympian great Simone Biles, Rachel and Jeff Bagwell, Francis and Tony Buzbee, Tina and Dan Silvestri, Ally Shell and Martin Van Kookwijk, Melissa and Michael Mithoff, Nicole and James Lassiter, Gena and David Rush, Brigitte Kalai, Courtney Hopson, Dr. Monica Patel, and Tiffany and Randall Wong among many others.
Video by Johnny Luu
Photos by Quy Tran