Bee Ball 2011 was a Huge Success!

THANK YOU to everyone who came out, voted, volunteered, and otherwise helped to make the Bee Ball a success again this year. Thanks to you, we raised more than $5,000 for the beehive collective and our work to promote groups focusing on the triple bottom line of people, planet, and prosperity in Raleigh.

In particular, we’d like to thank all of our sponsors: The Borough, Busy Bee, Drew Davidson, Empire Eats, Erin Debnam Photography, Great Outdoor Provision Company, Isaac Hunters Tavern, Open Intelligence, and Raleigh Typhoon. We’d also like to thank all of our fantastic royalty candidates: Brooks Ann McKinney, Carla Rea, Claire Hester, Holly Eden aka Holly Wanna Crackya, Sara Phoenix, Aly Khalifa, Grayson Currin, Jay Winfrey, Johnny Mack, and Sterling Maxwell aka Veda Renfrow. Thanks also to Ben Clack, Countdown Quartet, DJ Epic Fail, and our friends at the Berkeley Cafe.

We also wanted to share the great Bee Ball portraits taken by the talented Erin Debnam. To view the photos visit www.enjoyphotos.com and use the user name “BeeBall2011″ and the password “26129″. You can buy copies of your favorites and download low resolution photos for online use.

Click here to visit our sponsors and please give them your support!

2011 Royalty Court:

Carla Rea
Carla Rea………cupcakes, unicorns, new shoes and rainbows! Carla lights up the world with her smile. She can turn a ‘nothing’ day into something that makes it ALL seem worth while. Carla’s a downtown Raleighwood kinda gal! She was born in NC and has been a hair stylist in this beautiful City of Oaks for many moons now. So yes, she knows how to plant a tomato plant, pack a cooler for the beach, and give directions with short cuts. Carla has been the emcee at Kirby Derby for years, worked for SparkCon/Fashion Spark and is the voice in an playful commercial by Paul Fredrich creator of the Stormy mascot for our Hurricanes. Currently she is volunteering for CMF raising money for people living locally with HIV/AIDS. Carla says “Volunteering is where it’s at. Giving back feels good.” After being asked to join this amazing Beehive court of which she is honored, she read about the Beehive Collective. Carla thinks it rocks and says she is joining. You should too! Beehive’s new theme is TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE SUBSTAINABILITY. You can help support this cause by….VOTING FOR CARLA!! And remember guns don’t kill people, people with mustaches kill people!

Brooks Ann McKinney
Brooks Ann is a funky social worker here in downtown Raleigh. Originally from Kernersville NC, this country girl loves spending time with her chickens and chihuahuas on Haywood Street. She works for Wake County Medical Society as an outreach worker for homeless that are mentally ill and disabled. She plays soccer for TASL, but has dreams of being an all American Rodeo Star. Brooks Ann would love to represent the Beehive Collective as Bee Queen due to her everyday service to homeless in our community.

Grayson Currin
Grayson Currin is the Music Editor of the Independent Weekly and the Co-Director of Hopscotch Music Festival. He graduated from N.C. State in 2005 with a degree in Biological Sciences, an education he uses only when he’s able to reference it in biographies such as this. He is a staff writer at Pitchfork Media and a blogger for the Independent Film Channel, and he writes for The Village Voice, spin.com, The Nashville Scene and Shuffle. Sadly, the idiot has only written on a bathroom wall once, which is a pretty bland way to live life. Speaking of life, he lives on King Charles Road with his infinitely smarter and better looking girlfriend, Tina, two cats, two dogs and too many records. As of this writing, his only hobby is Season Four of the hit television show The Wire.

Holly Eden (aka Holly Wanna Crackya)
Fly like a bumble bee, buzzz…can’t nobody f*ck with me. Holly likes roller derby, hula hooping and pie. Please vote for her to be royalty, or she may stab you with a fork.

Claire Hester
Claire Hester was born and raised in Raleigh. In case that’s not enough to convince you to vote for her, perhaps you’ll be swayed by her commitment to excellence, snack foods, champagne-related drinks and dance parties. She also organizes a killer spelling bee. Speaking of dance parties … Sometimes, if you’re really lucky, she’ll bring out her purple iPod, take over your stereo system, and wow you with classics such as the theme from Duck Tales or Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. If you’ve never heard either, or especially if you have, then you should vote for her. Really, you should. Claire Hester, Bee Ball Queen. It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

Aly Khalifa
Aly Khalifa has worked for 117 years to be King of Raleigh. He’s been here ever since his freshman year at NC State, and that was kind of a long time ago. He makes his living working with inventors but prefers homegrown mischief and so co-founded stuff like Designbox, Kirby Derby Day and SPARKcon. Aly can be seen holding court at the Tiki Bar with The Lady Beth, his Lil’ Squire Mica and Angus the Scratch-n-dent Pitbull. However he’s fairly convinced that he was destined for the Bee Court since his name in Arabic means “Great Handsome King.” Fortunately he still hasn’t figured out where to stick his crown.

Johnny Mack
Hello… I’m Johnny Mack. My love for Raleigh is rivaled only by my affinity for laughin’ little babies and ladies named after luxury automobiles.Since moving here from most of Cackalack and some of Wyoming, it’s been inspiring to witness and be part of Raleigh’s transformation into a center of creativity and expression. With those who help establish our burgeoning eclectic culture represented in this Royal Bee Court, I’m more than honored to be a part. So, vote for everybody and then help me impress my little lady Lincoln Town Car by voting for me twice. Now raise a toast to yourself for all you do to make our fair city a more colorful and interesting place to have another toast. Thank you very much.

Sterling Maxwell (AKA Veda Renfrow)
Sterling Maxwell (aka The LadyMan), the Triangle area’s original Drag King/Gender Performer, has been a national and international performing artist for 20+ years. Sterling’s School of Drag focuses on the expression and exploration of each person’s individual gender identity. The LadyMan is a guest performer and emcee with NC burlesque groups Burlesque Underground, Purrrlesque and Hellcat Vixens. You can catch Sterling performing at venues around the Triangle, working to set more minds and bodies free in expressing one’s self… be it in life or on the stage.

Sara Phoenix
Sara Phoenix is one hell of a complex energy presence. An aerial/fire/circus/hoop performer with a bent towards social justice and human growth, Sara Phoenix revels in her love of movement as expression and utilizes various forms of Cirque style performance art. Whether wielding her trusty hula hoop, or brandishing her flaming fire sword, her continuous shape shifting and provocative performances prove themselves to be a constant source of inspiration and sultry delight. With her love for community and group-work, Sara Phoenix is a member of Awaking C.H.A.N.G.E, The Eclectic Collective, Phoenix Rising Productions and The N.C. Perfomer’s Society.

Jay Winfrey
My name is Jay Winfrey. I am a lover. Beer is my work. My lovely ladies are my joy. I can be very funny at times and also tend to embarrass myself regularly. I have lived most of my life in Raleigh, Asheville, Dublin, and Portland. I still have a good portion of my life to live and I know for a fact I do not want to spend it behind a desk. This makes my retirement options dim. Cats are cool…but they make me sneeze.