Ambassadors honoured at Gala Dinner
Over 250 guests gathered at the magnificent National Museum in Cardiff on 5 November to honour the People’s Ambassador of the Year and the Cardiff Ambassador of the Year 2009. The event was also a celebration of the Cardiff Ambassadors’ Programme - conceived by Cardiff & Co to spread the word that Cardiff is an excellent place to live, visit, invest, study and play.
Hosting what proved a hugely successful event was John Inverdale with Lord-Digby Jones as the after-dinner speaker.
The Chief Executive of the Admiral Group, Henry Engelhardt received the award for the Cardiff Ambassador of the Year in recognition of his efforts to promote the city over the past twelve months. Henry Engelhardt was praised by Lord Digby Jones for the significant contribution that his company has made to both the local and UK economy. The Admiral Group employs 4,000 people and has a market capitalisation of over £2 billion. The company has grown year on year since their inception at their Cardiff headquarters in 1993.
The late Hilary David, a local businessman, who dedicated 15 years of his life to see a fitting statue erected to celebrate the life of Ivor Novello was recognised with a posthumous award – presented to his wife, Beth David by the Leader of Cardiff Council, Councillor Rodney Berman. The twelve foot bronze statue of Ivor Novello which now sits proudly alongside the Wales Millennium Centre leaves a lasting legacy for the people of Cardiff and visitors to the city to enjoy. Accepting the award, Beth David said, “I know that Hilary would have been humbled but quietly pleased to have been recognised in such a way by the people of Cardiff – a city that meant so much to him.”
The Cardiff Ambassador Gala Dinner evening was also used as a platform to celebrate and recognise Wales’ sporting ambassadors and to raise funds to support their efforts. At the end of the night, John Inverdale, the evening’s MC congratulated the audience for raising almost £3,500 for the 2010 Wales Commonwealth Games Team.
Commenting on the event, Professor Tony Chapman, Vice Chancellor of UWIC, said “We were delighted to support the first Cardiff Ambassadors Gala Dinner and congratulate all of those who won awards on the evening. Held in a magnificent venue the event succeeded in raising the profile of the Ambassadors programme and of Cardiff as a city of learning”.
Cardiff & Co would like thank UWIC, the Gala Dinner’s title sponsor and the event’s other sponsors, the National Museum, Push4, Quadrant and the Park Plaza.
09/11/2009
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