The Fleur de Lis Ball is a cotillion

Cotillion

In American usage, a cotillion is a formal ball and social gathering, often the venue for presenting débutantes during the débutante season – usually May through December. Cotillions are also used as classes to teach social etiquette, respect and common morals for the younger ages with the...

 (or debutante

Debutante

A débutante is a young lady from an aristocratic or upper class family who has reached the age of maturity, and as a new adult, is introduced to society at a formal "début" presentation. It should not be confused with a Debs...

 ball) in St. Louis

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

, Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

, for the adolescents of affluent St. Louis Catholic society. It was started in 1958 by a group of Catholic upper-class women. It teaches etiquette and ballroom skills to teenage girls and boys. Four years of classes end with the Fleur de Lis Ball itself, which benefits Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital

Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital

-Overview:Cardinal Glennon Children’s Medical Center is a not-for-profit 190-bed inpatient and outpatient pediatric medical center. As the nation’s only free-standing, Catholic children’s hospital, Cardinal Glennon has provided care for children regardless of ability to pay since 1956...

. The ball is a very formal event, with long white gowns and gloves, and the girls are escorted and presented to the Archbishop of St. Louis.

See also

• Veiled Prophet Ball
  Veiled Prophet Ball
  The Veiled Prophet Ball is a dance held each December in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, by a secret society named the "Veiled Prophet Organization" , first founded by prominent St. Louisans in 1878, and originally part of the Veiled Prophet Fair , which today is Fair St. Louis...
  
   - St. Louis's other debutante cotillion
• Jewel Ball
  Jewel Ball
  The Jewel Ball is the main annual debutante ball held in Kansas City, Missouri, in the United States. It is organized by the Jewel Ball Foundation, which appoints a prominent Kansas City socialite to be the chairwoman. In 2007, it was held on June 9....
  
  - another debuante cotillion in Missouri