HERITAGE FOUNDATION OF WILLIAMSON COUNTY, TENN. HOSTS MOST SUCCESSFUL HERITAGE BALL TO DATE
FRANKLIN, Tenn. – As guests arrived at Eastern Flank Battlefield Park on Saturday, Oct. 5 for the 46th annual Heritage Ball, presented by Pinnacle Financial Partners, guests were instantly transported to an elegant evening of food, drink, dancing and fundraising for the Heritage Foundation of Williamson Co. Upon arrival, ladies and gentlemen were welcomed by Ball Co-chairs Senator Bill Frist and Tracy Frist and invited to the bar featuring McConnell Hospitality Group’s signature cocktail, The Franklin Grove. In addition to cocktails and passed hors d’oeuvres, auction items were displayed throughout the event and available for bid. This year’s auction featured a VIP Pilgrimage Festival experience, a five-night stay at the Ritz-Carlton at Palm Beach, a premium villa stay at Atlantis Harborside, lunch with Williamson County Mayor Rogers Anderson and club level seats to a Tennessee Titans game.
At 7:00 p.m., Old Towne Brass Civil War drummers lead more than 850 attendees to take their seats in the main ballroom. The décor was inspired by natural elegance, pairing the old and new and setting the environment for unity and togetherness. Like dinners at Monticello in Tracy Frist’s home state of Virginia, the ball had unique elements that lend a “feast of reason” to the affair, while focusing on the peoples of Tennessee with florals designed by Amos Gott of AmosEvents. The dinner menu by G Catering included a brie and apple salad, bacon wrapped chicken roulade, beef filet and chicken roulade, wild rice with roasted grapes and pecans, salt-roasted heirloom carrots, roasted asparagus and a chocolate tart for dessert. The inaugural Tracy Frist Legacy Award was presented to Dayton Duncan, writer and producer, alongside Ken Burns, of the eight-part, 16-hour docuseries “Country Music,” for his life’s work as a writer, filmmaker, political figure and conservationist.
Following recognition of the event sponsors by CEO of the Heritage Foundation Bari Beasley, guests were treated to entertainment by Kix Brooks followed by dancing to the music of The Craig Duncan Orchestra. In addition, the Foundation had a surprise announcement. Gordon and Shaun Inman provided a generous gift toward the organization’s capital campaign for its latest restoration project, Franklin Grove Estate & Gardens. CEO Bari Beasley announced and unveiled “The Gordon and Shaun Inman Conservatory at Franklin Grove.” “This conservatory will be magnificent, and the Inmans’ legacy will be forever tied to this stunning property,” said Beasley. The 46th Annual Heritage Ball raised more money than ever before, in the Foundation’s 52-year history. In addition to the main event, the Heritage Ball Late Party, sponsored by Estēe Lauder Companies and co-chaired by Katie Lillard and Sarah Locker, welcomed more than 80 attendees and featured hors d’oeuvres and an open bar.
“Tracy and I have a profound respect and appreciation for the entertainers and cultural groups that performed. Their music and dance magically captured the theme of the night: Discovery – discovery of our rich past, from ancient times represented by the Red Road Native Dancers, to our 19th century history demonstrated by the Old Towne Brass Civil War drummers and Fisk Jubilee Singers, to the present captured by the Craig Duncan Orchestra and our dear friend Kix Brooks,” said Ball Chairman Senator Bill Frist. “We hope that the Ball guests not only enjoyed the entertainment but felt the meaning behind these historically significant artists. Together, we shape the future of our cultural heritage.”
The Heritage Ball is made possible by Pinnacle Financial Partners, Estee Lauder, Barry and Jackie Alexander, Garrett, Talley & Thorington (Franklin, Tennessee Division of Cheatham, Palermo & Garrett, An Association of Attorneys), FirstBank and Vanderbilt Health, Vanderbilt Orthopedics, Frost Brown Todd, Chuck McDowell and Jo Ellen Drennon McDowell, SouthStar, Williamson Medical Center, Bank of America, Bentley Nashville, Brookdale Franklin, Senior Living Solutions, CoreCivic, The Edwards Pharris Group at Morgan Stanley, First Citizens National Bank, First Tennessee Bank, Franklin Synergy Bank, Grogan Jewelers by Lon, GSRM Law, Landmark Community Bank, Lipman Brothers LLC, Mars Petcare, Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival, Quest Events, Southern Events, Tennessee Equine Hospital & Berry Farms Animal Hospital, Kent Thiry and Denise O’Leary, YOUR Williamson, G Catering, Kevin Wimpy Photography, McConnell Hospitality Group, PMC, Parking Management Company, AmosEvents, Dorothy Cate and Thomas F. Frist Foundation, Cressey Cares and the Williamson Medical Center Foundation.
To learn more about the event, please visit www.williamsonheritage.org/heritageball. For more information about the Heritage Foundation and additional programs and preservation projects, visit www.williamsonheritage.org.
Heritage Ball photos below.
About the Heritage Foundation
Since 1967, the Heritage Foundation of Williamson County, TN has been dedicated to protecting and preserving Williamson County’s architectural, geographic and cultural heritage and promoting the ongoing revitalization of downtown Franklin in the context of historic preservation. Notable projects include The Franklin Theatre, Roper’s Knob, parts of the Franklin battlefield and the Old, Old Jail. The Foundation brings county history to about 3,000 public, private and homeschooled children each year through the Heritage Classroom program and walking tours of downtown Franklin. Events and festivals produced by the Heritage Foundation such as Main Street Festival, the Heritage Ball, Pumpkinfest and Dickens of a Christmas bring hundreds of thousands of locals and visitors to downtown Franklin each year. The Heritage Foundation owns and operates the “home of first kisses,” The Franklin Theatre, the area’s nationally accredited Main Street Program through the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Downtown Franklin Association, and the organization’s newest division and current restoration and rehabilitation project, Franklin Grove Estate & Gardens. For more information about the Heritage Foundation, visit https://williamsonheritage.org.
