On Thursday (5th July) evening we attended the annual BPA Summer Ball, only this year there was a twist. This year’s ball was dedicated to the memory of Dave Hodgson, former Marketing Director at Marketing Birmingham who tragically died from metatastic melanoma on New Year ’s Eve. Dave had moved out to Dubai in 2010 so it was fitting that the guys at the BPA gave this year’s ball a Middle Eastern theme.
The event raised a fantastic £8000 for Skin Cancer Research Fund (SCaRF) - the only UK charity looking into metastatic melanomas. It also gave us all a chance to dress up, look stupid and give Dave the send off he deserved. You can see just how stupid we looked below (don't judge us - it was all for a good cause!).
So why are we writing about the event? Dave’s story has touched many people, for many reasons. For us, Dave was a big supporter of Pitch and what we were doing in the market. In particular, Dave was a major driving force behind helping us get our B-Hive scheme off the ground, helping us secure funding, making introductions to key figures and generally championing what the scheme stood for. He was as passionate about developing young talent as we are. And he continued his advocacy of the scheme when he arrived in Dubai.
Needless to say, Dave wasn’t just an industry partner. He was a friend. So thanks Dave. Thanks for your support, your friendship and the many fun times we had together. You’d have enjoyed the ball immensely.
