Paprika
The black-tie dinner, dance, and silent auction began in 1992 when PAPRIKA!, organized by Tom and Kori Smith, moved to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel where the next 27 PAPRIKA! balls were held.
Individual and corporate support for the Cleveland Hungarian Development Panel, particularly through PAPRIKA!, has been the backbone sustaining the Panel’s projects for the past 32 years.
PAPRIKA! has often been organized around a theme, setting the mood and tone for the evening. These themes included:
1991- Honoring Ambassador Zwack at the Omni Hotel
1992- Honoring Senator George Voinovich at the Stouffer Hotel
1993- Dancing on the Danube at the Ritz Carlton
1994- Romance in Budapest at the Ritz Carlton
1995- Paprika! The Hungarian Staff of Life!
1996- Celebrating Freedom (1956 Commemoration)
1997-Honoring Dr. Bob Hisrich and Dr.Scott `Cowen
1998- Honoring Hungarian Ambassador George Banlaki
1999- Honoring the Cleveland Playhouse
2000- A Royal Event
2001- A Village Wedding
2002- Prominade along the Danube
2003 – Hungarians in Hollywood
2004 – Farsang – A Hungarian Hollywood
2005- A Night Under the Big Town
2006 – Celebrating Freedom- Remembrance of the 1956 Hungarian uprising against Russian occupation
2007 – Romancing the Music
2008 – All Aboard the Orient Express
2009- Enchanted Garden, Celebrating The Hungarian Cultural Garden
2010 – Celebrate!
2011 – Party on the Puszta
2012 – Global Trek: A Rollicking Grand Ball Celebrating Global Cleveland
2013 – Orchestrated Grand Ball: Celebrating the Cleveland Orchestra
2014 – Diamonds of Science: Celebrating the Great Lakes Science Center
2015 – Turning Silver: The 25th Anniversary of the Cleveland Hungarian Development Panel
2016 – Celebrating the100th Anniversary of the Cleveland Museum of Art
2017 – Tulips to Tony: Celebrating the Cleveland Play House
2018 – Preserve the Past, Secure the Future: Celebrating the Western Reserve Historical Society
2019 – Swing into the 30’s: Farewell to PAPRIKA! for now…..
The PAPRIKA! balls were always memorable and distinctive.
The Ritz-Carton chef, Richard Arnoldi, always created an extraordinary menu inspired the theme of the year. The evening featured wonderful Hungarian hors d’oeuvres, followed by an elegant 5 course Hungarian dinner, and closed with fruits and delicious Hungarian pastries. There was always floral arrangements by Steve Tokar and ice sculpture echoing the theme. A special feature was that the ice sculptures had hollow chutes. Palinka, the distinctive Hungarian fruit brandy was poured through the chute to chill it for those who wanted to sample it.
Activities included dancing, silent auction gazing and buying treasures where the Wild Game Dinner was the most sought-after item. Hosted by Tom and Kori Smith, who held 70 out of the 90 Wild Game Dinners, which translates 2 to 5 dinners every year.
Usually held at the Smith’s home 12 guests were served a 5 course wild game dinner. It is difficult to describe the scrumptious dishes without writing an entire Proust-type novel. Suffice it to say, if you were the lucky guest who was an attendee, the experience will stay with you for a long time. Jenny and Glenn Brown were frequent supporters of these dinners, a truly remarkable event owned by 1,080 Wild Game Dinner guests. The Wild Game dinners were a major contributor to the fundraising success of the Panel, particularly because all aspects of the dinner – food,wine,venue,service- were provided by Panel members or friends.
Fundraising efforts over the years had been sufficiently successful that the Panel’s grantmaking can continue in perpetuity from the investment income from the accumulated endowment. With this in mind, the last PAPRIKA! was held in March 2019. It was the 30th year celebration of the Cleveland Hungarian Development Panel.
With the Panel’s financial future on solid grounds, the Cleveland Hungarian Development Panel in 2020 became an organizational partner with the Cleveland Foundation. This partnership will ensure that the Panel’s work continues in perpetuity.
