The Crowd: Pink ties blend with Angels red at ball

Their goal was to “hit it out of the park.”

The 2011 Pink Tie Ball, produced by the Orange County affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, recently took place at Angel Stadium. The benefit event drew nearly 400 guests and netted $310,000, earmarked for breast health services for underserved Orange County women.

The unusual pink-tie evening at the Anaheim ballpark was created by more than 160 volunteers donating their time and resources to make one of the spring social season’s events an enormous success. Trish Coury, Michael Gustafson, Analisa and Bruce Albert, Marica Pendjer and John Miller chaired the event.

Major sponsorship came from the Allergan Foundation, Harald Herrmann, representing the Yard House restaurants, prominent real estate executive Lee Ann Canaday, Julia and George Argyros, Wylie and Bette Aitken, Saks Fifth Avenue, and, of course, the Angels, to name only a few.

The outfield served as a backdrop for the party.

Arriving guests were escorted onto the field by students from the Sunburst Youth Challenge Academy, an at-risk youth program run by the California National Guard in partnership with the Orange County Department of Education. Arriving on the outfield, the crowd found a massive silent auction sprinkled with exciting Angels’ memorabilia.

A three-course dinner prepared by the White House of Anaheim and the Bluewater Grill featured an entrée of filet mignon and halibut. Wines were donated by the Trinchero Family Estates winery. The Jay Sterling Band kept the party on its feet well into the starry night.

Komen for the Cure is the world’s largest network of breast cancer survivors and activists fighting to save lives and provide quality care for all women fighting the disease. Since its launch in 1982, the organization has raised $1.9 billion and is considered the largest source of nonprofit funds dedicated to the fight against breast cancer worldwide.

Spotted in the crowd at Angel Stadium were Komen’s Orange County Executive Director Lisa Wolter and local board President Sue Parks. Also front and center for the cause were Eric Finley, Siew Peng Yap, Lawrence Pasternack, Mike Paz, and Hall of Fame inductee Rod Carew and his wife, Rhonda.

The philanthropic Ed Arnold, anchor for PBS SoCal, served as master of ceremonies for the evening joining fellow Susan G. Komen supporters Barry and Gina Arbuckle and Jim Ulcickas representing Bluewater Grill.

For more information on the Orange County affiliate of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, visit https://www.komenoc.org or call (714) 957-9157.

THE CROWD runs Thursdays and Saturdays. B.W. Cook is editor of the Bay Window, the official publication of the Balboa Bay Club in Newport Beach.