Enjoy everything Latin, from music and dance to Latin food and beverages, at the 14th Latin charity ball, themed alma latina or latin soul, while helping to contribute to a breast cancer organisation.
Organised by the Latin Women’s Associations of Malaysia (LWAM), the charity ball takes place on Nov 11 at 7pm at Hilton Kuala Lumpur. The president of LWAM, Cristina Gutierrez, said BWCA is the beneficiary of the charity ball at a press conference at the Hilton Hotel Kuala Lumpur on Sept 4.
“The Latin ball is our main fundraising event every year, and it attracts not only our Latin community but also many segments of Kuala Lumpur’s expat and local social groups to celebrate the cultural richness of Latin American countries and Spain, as well as supporting a charitable, noble cause that benefits local communities, especially women,” said Gutierrez.
“It is a true representation of the vibrant Latin spirit, full of colours, flavours, music and tradition. In summary, a soul, a Latin soul, which in Spanish is ‘alma latina’,” added Gutierrez.
The event promises an unforgettable night with all-night live music performances by Latino bands, dancers, and DJs for all to celebrate.
During the ball, the guests will enjoy a four-course dinner inspired by Latin American and Spanish flavours, which will be prepared by Hilton’s Executive Chef Kasi Hassan, along with wines from foreign countries. More importantly, there will be an auction of artwork and fund-raising for the Breast Cancer Welfare Association (BCWA).
The ticket for the event is priced at RM550 for members and RM600 for non-members, and all proceeds will go to BCWA.
BWCA’s president, Lim Kim Foong, who was present at the press conference, spoke about the challenges they face in educating the masses on breast cancer. The organisation hires experienced and professional nurses who travel to different states in Malaysia to conduct talks on breast health issues and the importance of early detection of breast cancer.
According to Lim, the talks make the public aware as they conduct tutorials on breast self-examination using first aid models.
She said during the community outreach services, they would need to deploy three to four nurses to handle the clinical breast examinations and two volunteers to handle the talks on breast health and the early detection of breast cancer.
“However, our current company vehicle, a Mitsubishi Wald, is over 18 years old and is really struggling to keep up with the punishing schedule that our Cummunity Outreach team keeps to,” said Lim.
“As beneficiaries of this year’s Latin Ball 2023, we will now be able to purchase a new vehicle that will enable the required number of nurses to travel safely to all rural and remote locations, and they can load the two inflatable mobile clinics, which are packed into two huge luggage bags, as well as all the educational materials, inclusive of their own luggage, especially when they travel out of state,” said Lim.
She also said that the LWAM is committed to fundraising for something that will make a tangible difference for breast cancer surgery patients. Besides this, BCWA offers temporary breast prostheses to breast cancer patients who undergo surgery.
“The temporary prostheses are sewn by hand in different sizes by a group of dedicated breast cancer survivors who formed a sewing group known as ‘Thimble Thumbs’,” said Lim. Currently, Thimble is confined to a small utility area that is not conducive to their work.
With the help of LWAM, they hope to create a light-filled working space by upgrading their sewing machine, which dates back to 2006, and revive Thimble Thumbs as their temporary replacement stocks are running low.
