This years Ellen MacArthur Trust Ball raised in excess of £70k towards the work of the Trust. With nearly 600 people in attendance and set in the sumptuous surroundings of Queen Victoria's former residence, Osborne House, the event which was held in a marquee in honour of the Royal tradition there was an overwhelming success. The food was exceptional, the auction captivating and the inspiration from Ellen and Vicky who had been helped by the Trust moved people to tears.

Tim Sewell from Skandia announced their support for the Ellen MacArthur Trust Round Britain Event next year and expressed his delight in being able to contribute to such a worthy cause. The Ellen MacArthur Trust has been the "Official Charity" for the last 3-years at Skandia Cowes Week which has helped the Trust raise even more funds to fuel their incredible work with young people recovering from cancer and Leukemia.

Frank Fletcher the Manager of the Ellen MacArthur Trust expressed his gratitude for all the help and support the Trust has received over the years and Ellen spoke eloquently of the value of the life changing experiences that the Trust brings to these hugely deserving young people.

As in 2007 3greenlights provided assistance in helping to secure auction prizes for the event. One of the surprises of the night was the Eco Scooter ( a scooter that runs on a 12v battery which charges from the mains and does 30miles on one charge ) which fetched £2k on the night - well in excess of it's retail value with a generous donation from Kim Buckland of Liz Earle who was apparently delighted with her success in the bidding. Liz Earle ( cosmetics and skin care ) have a very strong environmental and sustainability policy running throughout their company and it is great to see them leading from the front in this way, For more info on the EcoScooter visit www.thegreenscootercompany.com

3greenlights were also able to secure a position for one of their other clients at the Ball as Corum became the sponsors of the Champagne Reception and donated a watch for the heads and tails game and a main auction prize. The Corum contribution topped £17k in the end with a mix of monies raised from the auctions and their donation to the Trust.

The evening went on until the small hours and everyone said what a wonderful time they had ... supporting the view put forward by the Times Newspaper earlier in the week that the Ellen MacArthur Trust Ball was THE social occasion of Cowes Week - seeing the revelers at the end of the evening it was hard not to agree.

The Ellen MacArthur Trust will be announcing their plans for next year shortly - with the Round Britain Event starting in May - 2009 looks like being a very busy year for the Trust - watch this space for news as it breaks ...

Thanks from 3greenlights to all of you who provided auction prizes and donations on the night - it is a very worthy cause.

For more information on the work of the Ellen MacArthur Trust go to www.ellenmacarthurtrust.org