Cover photo: The 2025 Gala Awards ceremony took place Thursday, February 15 in Austin, TX. Photo courtesy Ivan Piedra Photography/AGNYC Productions, Inc.

Special Events magazine is delighted to announce the recipients of this year's Gala Awards, who were honored during Catersource The Special Event on February 15th in Austin, TX.

Congratulations to all of this year's finalists! 

Best Entertainment

The Royal 100th Anniversary Gala | hala inc. | Photo courtesy The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair

The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair was established in November 1922 to provide a showcase for Canada’s best in agriculture and equestrian sport. Now the world’s largest combined indoor agricultural and equestrian show, the annual 10-day event takes place every November at Toronto’s Exhibition Place and celebrates the best in agriculture, local food, and equestrian competitions from across the country. The Royal returned from November 4–13, 2022 for a milestone year: Celebrating A Century of Champions. Held on Wednesday, November 2, The Royal 100th Anniversary Gala welcomed 1,000 Royal patrons, political and philanthropic community leaders, for a night to remember.

Best Event for a Private Individual

The Coronation of King Charles III.1 | High Rise Events | Photo courtesy Curtis Dahl Photography

The Coronation of His Majesty, King III.0 took place in England on May 6, 2023 at Westminster Abbey, the same day as Charles III.1 was crowned King of Sherman Oaks, California. Both Charles’ were born in 1953. 100 noble guests were treated to pageantry parading down a red carpet, saluted by "British Guardsmen." They entered "Westminster Abbey" where English cocktails, appetizers, British dinner and dessert were served. A ceremonial experience unfolded in the lush Palace Gardens. Elegant tables were swathed in crimson and gold accented with candelabras, crowns, jewels and candlelight. Charles III.1 sat upon a vintage gold throne, crowned King by his Wife the Queen.

Best Event Produced for a Corporation or Association: Overall Budget Over $500,000

Freak Show | Cerbelli Creative | Photo courtesy Ivan Piedra Photography 

An insurance company hosted a FREAK SHOW themed costume party. This event marked the first-time employees gathered for this occasion post-pandemic. The spectacular location set in the rolling hills of Shrewsbury, New Jersey offered guests an eclectic evening to enjoy the finest in culinary and entertainment curated exclusively for them. The project included over 50-performers, a band, a DJ, specialty performers, choreographed production segments, and costumed atmosphere performers.

Best Event Produced for a Corporation or Association: Overall Budget Under $500,000

Elevate in Concert at Dr. Phillips Center | Hello! Destination Management | Photo courtesy Hello! Destination Management

On September 12, 2023, Maritz welcomed 300 of its global leadership and top clients for an elevated experiment at the transformative Steinmetz Hall at the Dr. Phillips Center. With seats that literally rise up and flip, and a proscenium arch that disappears, the venue was just as part of the story as the performers and the guests. For this discerning group of meetings industry insiders, Hello! Destination Management stripped back the experience and pulled the attendees into a living rehearsal, from the moment guests enter mid-rehearsal to finally viewing the finale from seats they watch rise up right in front of them.

Best Fundraising or Nonprofit Event

The Royal 100th Anniversary Gala | hala inc. | Photo courtesy The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair

The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair was established in November 1922 to provide a showcase for Canada’s best in agriculture and equestrian sport. Now the world’s largest combined indoor agricultural and equestrian show, the annual 10-day event takes place every November at Toronto’s Exhibition Place and celebrates the best in agriculture, local food, and equestrian competitions from across the country. The Royal returned from November 4–13, 2022 for a milestone year: Celebrating A Century of Champions. Held on Wednesday, November 2, The Royal 100th Anniversary Gala welcomed 1,000 Royal patrons, political and philanthropic community leaders, for a night to remember.

Best Multiple-Day Event Program for a Corporation or Association

The Future of Water 2-Day Gala & Conference | Event Solutions | Photo courtesy Event Solutions

Event Solutions blended technology and artistry to transform a 140,000 square foot venue with over 11,000 square feet of production and hundreds of living plants for the “Future of Water” 2-day event. Guests emerged through a seamless LED tunnel, washing them with pristine depictions of nature. Living fountains, breathing plants, and clever lighting in the lobby set the stage. LED arches and plant walls gated the breakout rooms while upstairs, guests entered through a cascade of water vapors with the host’s logos in holographic displays. Crystal chandeliers, living centerpieces, and innovative takes on activation station themes created the main event.

Best Wedding

A Dance in the Clouds | Lynn Fletcher Weddings | Photo courtesy Andras Schram Photography

Weddings bring together a unique blend of magic, from the dress to the flowers, to the music, to the first dance. It also brings together people. The Ukrainian couple decided to use their wedding to raise awareness and funds for Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts. They invited close friends, family, Ukrainian celebrities, and international government dignitaries with the hope of providing immediate support for the Ukraine’s energy and material needs in rebuilding from the war with Russia. The wedding provided guests with a brief escape from the day-to-day reality of the war back home as they witnessed a dance in the clouds.

Sustainability in Events

Innovate Canada | Parléview | Photo courtesy Destination Canada/Parléview/Johnson Studios

Innovate Canada highlights local knowledge capital and expertise in Canada’s economic sectors of priority. Hosted semi-annually, Destination Canada invites select international C-suite executives to meet one-to-one with sector experts and business specialists to learn about national capabilities and how meetings and events can be hosted in like-minded ecosystems. Innovate Canada 2023 – Advanced Manufacturing hosted 45 attendees in Waterloo Region, Ontario from May 8-11, 2023. Over four event days, executives learned about Canada’s advanced manufacturing sector through interactive industry tours, attended a one-to-one meeting marketplace, and had exceptional local experiences.

Most Outstanding Spectacle, Fair, or Festival

Surrey Fusion Festival 2023 | City of Surrey & MRG Events Ltd. | Photo courtesy City of Surrey

Surrey Fusion Festival is a vibrant, free, family-oriented celebration at Holland Park, spotlighting Surrey's diverse cultures. Over 50 Cultural Pavilions offer authentic cuisine, art, and education from around the world. In 2023, the festival featured eight performance areas, with headliners DJ Shub, JESSIA, Gurnam Bhullar, and Wesli. The year's theme, "Dance Around the World," encouraged unity through global rhythms. Attendees immersed themselves in dance lessons, culinary journeys, and engagement with local businesses and non-profits. The event fosters cultural exchange, and embodied the theme through dance stages, cultural dance attire, and a lively Parade of Culture, creating a tapestry of togetherness.

Total Decor

Jinghong | Beijing Chaoran Yingfeng Consulting Co., Ltd  | Photo courtesy RaysonWong Studio

This wedding design was inspired by Cao Zhi's "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River." This eulogy in this poem fictionalizes the author's encounter with the Goddess of Luo and their mutual longing and love. It describes love as graceful as a flying geese and as winding as a swimming dragon. The work "Jinghong" borrows the graceful feeling of falling in love with Luo Shen to design a dynamic and flowing wedding scene decoration, which symbolizes love and life like flying geese and dragons, like walking into the sunset together with loved ones.

Designer of the Year

David Merrell | AOO Events | Photo courtesy AOO Events

The grandest successes in creativity often come from unexpected diversity. Challenges occurred for David Merrell and his team from the wide-ranging effects of the pandemic to unprecedented weather. Last minute choices to move events from outside to inside were the new normal, due to some of the coldest and wettest weather to ever hit Southern California. A devasting fire loss at AOO's warehouse in the late spring delivered what could have been considered a “crippling blow” to their capabilities. Instead, Merrell and his team excelled in every project they designed and produced from that point on with significant increases in business and creative projects.

Submissions Now Open

It's once again time to celebrate the best of the best! Submissions are now being accepted for the Special Events 2025 Gala Awards!  We invite you to submit your best work from the past year. Join in the excitement and the spirit of our industry as we celebrate the hard work and exceptional accomplishments of our peers.

The categories for 2025 are: 

To submit an entry to this year's Gala awards, please visit our awards portal at https://ace-gala.awardsplatform.com/

Important Dates

If you are interested in entering in the ACE awards instead, you can enter the Catersource 2025 ACE awards in the same online portal as the Gala awards. Catersource The Special Event 2025 will run February 24-27 in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Both the ACE and Gala awards will be presented during the conference at a to-be-determined location in Fort Lauderdale.