Heart Ball Chair Kimberly Afkhami Reflects on Year of Preparations

When Kimberly Afkhami served as Heart Ball Chair-Elect in 2014, she began to think about selecting her theme. That was easy. Inspired by the women she has worked with on the Heart Ball committee for the past several years, she chose Passionate Hearts as the theme for the 2015 Heart Ball. “I just look at what these women do and how they give back to the community. They are passionate about their commitment.”

                                                                                    PHOTO COURTESY THE HEART BALL

Then she thought about her platform, the cause she would spend almost the entirety of 2015 promoting. She knew she wanted to focus on children, and with the Heart Ball having held the capital campaign in 2010 to update the Halle Heart Children’s Museum, in a way, the Museum became her inspiration. Because of the educational opportunities available at the Museum for both children and adults, she took on the issue of childhood obesity. She has spent the past year not only preparing for the Nov. 21 Heart Ball but also promoting her platform – doing a multitude of television and magazine interviews, drawing attention to childhood obesity, and visiting and promoting the Museum.

Of course, there’s more to being the Heart Ball chairman than selecting a theme and supporting a platform. There are meetings to run, committees to oversee and funds to raise. All of this, she says, has made the job at hand the “one of hardest things I’ve ever done, but the most rewarding – outside of raising my boys.”

Her “boys” are 21 and 23, and students at Arizona State University and the University of Arizona, respectively. Both are set to graduate within the next six months, and she’s excited to spend time preparing for their graduation celebrations.

On the heels of the Heart Ball, that should be a snap.

DESTINY
After the ball, Afkhami will return to Phoenix Art Museum, where she has been a docent for the last 15 years, having taken a hiatus this year. As a docent, she has conducted tours for both adults and schoolchildren, and presented programs at schools. But even with that experience, she notes that being Heart Ball chair “took me out of my comfort zone.”

“Having to make phone calls, meet with people, ask for donations – I hadn’t done these things before. I knew I had to do it, so I just did it. It’s remarkable how people respond to you.”

It’s easy to see why people respond to Afkhami. Her sincerity and commitment are apparent to anyone who speaks with her. She tapped into her inner strength, but also wasn’t afraid to tap into her available resources. Her committee and honorary chairs Billie Jo and Judd Herberger, whom she can’t praise enough, were part of her support system.

“I put my faith in my committee members, and they’ve done an outstanding job. These women are creative and fun. A lot of them are businesswomen, and they help take it to another level. They are passionate about helping me help the cause.”

She also credits her husband, Nariman Afkhami, with being a wonderful sounding board. “Heart Ball is all I talk about. I see it from one perspective, and he sees it from another,” she says. His is a business perspective she has found helpful.

“Your life leads you to your destiny, one way or another,” she reflects.

At the Feb. 11, 2015, kickoff breakfast, committee members dazzled with a change of clothing to reveal the year’s colors. Left, the 2015 Executive Committee: Chair-Elect Jennifer Carmer, Lisa Geyser, Chair Kimberly Afkhami, Sweetheart Libby Cohen, and Paula Wichterman. Right, Honorary Chairs Billie Jo and Judd Herberger with the committee. 

THE REVEAL
Like every previous Heart Ball chairman, Afkhami is closely guarding the details of the ball until the big night. The few “knowns” are these:

The colors are navy and platinum. Will she and her committee wear off-white as they did at the kickoff breakfast at Saks Fifth Avenue on Feb. 11? Will they change into navy midway through the event as they did that morning? Will they choose platinum?

Angelic Grove has been entrusted with ballroom design. Long tables? Round tables? Square? A combination?

A “really fun” band from the East Coast will provide the dance music. This one’s hard to guess as well.

One certainty: Dinner will be delicious. Menu whisperer Ina Manaster has worked with the team at the Arizona Biltmore to create the evening’s fare.

HAUTE EVENT PHOTOGRAPHY