Dutch American Heritage Gala 2005

The Fourteenth Annual Gala to celebrate Dutch American Heritage Day was held on Wednesday November 16, 2005 in the elegant grand ballroom of the California Club in downtown Los Angeles. William J. Heetderks, MD, PhD, of the National Institutes of Health, and the NESSO, the Netherlands Social Services Organization, were inducted into the Dutch American Hall of Fame.&nsbp; President Bush issued a special proclamation honoring Dr. Heetderks. The Pieter Meijers quintet again provided wonderful music to listen and dance to. Melina Gerges, soprano, entertained us with several arias.

Attendance was down this year but, thanks to donations and the silent auction, the event still raised over $8,000 to benefit the NESSO, the Hans Hienkens Fund and the Dutch studies program at UCLA.