Corey Miller had one request when it was time to start planning his Bar Mitzvah celebration…he didn’t want to wear a suit!
That made the venue choice very easy for his parents Shari and Gregg. Since he’s been playing basketball at Island Garden in West Hempstead since he was 8 years old, this was an easy decision.
They knew they made the right choice when all the pieces started to fall into place. Corey’s initials are CMM and his party was the night between the semi final and the final game of the NCAA Final Four, thus Corey’s March Madness was born!
We want to thank the Millers for sharing their celebration with our readers. All photography was done by Ira Rosen and the rest of the vendor information is listed at the bottom of this spotlight.
Featured above (L-R): Sister Ally, Mom Shari, Bar Mitzvah boy Corey, Dad Gregg and younger brother Jordan.
Robin Cohen of Robin Writes helped design an invitation that was traditional yet gave a basketball feel. Guests were asked to “Dress to play”
Duke is Corey’s favorite team, so Louie Max made basketball jerseys for the family to wear in the Duke colors of white and royal blue
Mom Shari worked with Kimberly from Runway Couture to design a white leather dress with royal blue suede panels to look like a jersey
If you spend anytime at your child’s basketball games, you know what a basketball facility looks like! With the help of Jamie from Artistry in Flowers (who acted as the party planner), they transformed the gym into a cool party space! Since the space is so large, it was divided into 3 sections: the front court was set up for basketball, the center court was transformed to have a feeling of a ballroom and the far court had several blow-ups for the kids to play on
As the young guests arrived they were broken up into 4 teams and each were given a bandana to correspond to a team. The DJ dancers acted as “counselors” and the kids had color war activities while the adults enjoyed their cocktail hour in the front lobby area
Using draping with lighting, vibrant linens and bright centerpieces, the center court is ready for guests
Mesh table linens from Table Wraps look like jerseys and NCAA balls fill the vases
Corey during his traditional candle lighting ceremony
Blow-up games filled the far court and were open for play during the cocktail hour and during the last hour of the party
White curtains draped part of the courts with NCAA posters and…
team pendants
Mini basketball jersey shirts from Parties By Debi told guests which college named table they would be seated at
Corey did a photo session at Hi-Tech Photography Events in all his different jerseys. Those were placed in lucite frames and put on a locker which served as his sign-in board
The crowd goes wild as Corey “makes his entrance” on the dancers shoulders
EJ The DJ provided the musical entertainment with Paul as MC. The crowd danced the night away!
Mark Of Excellence provided the delicious and creatively displayed food and made this cake specially for Corey
Michelle Weisman created the sweatshirt favors for the young guests. The NCAA logo was on the back and “One Shining Moment,” the theme song of March Madness!
Mitzvah Advice
Mom Shari said that having a party at this type of venue is a big undertaking! She was lucky to have 3 Mitzvah vendors: EJ The DJ, Artistry In Flowers and Mark of Excellence who worked together to give her family a terrific celebration.
She has this advice for our Mitzvah Market readers, “At the time I was planning Corey’s Bar Mitzvah, a close friend was also in planning mode, although her party was far more traditional than mine, it was very helpful to share ideas with each other and go thru the process together.”
Here is the list of vendors who made Corey’s Bar Mitzvah special. If you call any of them, please let them know you read about their services on MitzvahMarket.com.
Venue: Rosemary, Island Garden
Caterer: Mark Of Excellence
Decor/Flowers: Jamie, Artistry In Flowers
Jerseys for family: Louie Max
Sweatshirt favors: Michelle Weissman/Creative Specialties 516-637-0493
Mom’s Dress: Kimberly, Runway Couture 516-308-4639
Place cards: Parties By Debi
Invitation: Robin Cohen, Robin’s Writes and Invites, 516-822-5108
Musical Entertainment: MC Paul, EJ The DJ
Videographer: EJ The DJ
Linens: Table Wraps
Sign-In Locker: One Way Furniture
Photographer: Ira Rosen Studio
Photo session: Hi-Tech Photography Events
