Bellying up for a good cause

B.W. COOK

Thanksgiving came early this year as Newport-Mesa citizens joined

together for a feast of the harvest, Moroccan-style, to support Share

Our Selves.

Marrakesh restaurant in Costa Mesa hosted the dinner to raise

awareness and funds in support of the less fortunate in this

community. Latifa Bakiri, Marrakesh’s chef, served a Bastilla mixed

grill dinner that was accompanied by “Jo-Jo,” a Moroccan belly

dancer. That would have been a nice touch for the pilgrims.

Ali Rabbani, owner of Marrakesh, welcomed the Share Our Selves

crowd, all members of an auxiliary known as the A-Team led by Corona

del Mar resident Kathy Thompson. Mary Roosevelt, Beverly Montigel,

Debbie Day, Doug and Karen Harrington, Farhad Mirhady and Beverly

White were all in the crowd supporting the services of Costa Mesa’s

Share Our Selves, dedicated to providing essentials of life to county

citizens in need of help.

More than 300 local guests raised in excess of $150,000 for

science education at a recent Discovery Science Center gala. Dubbed

“Quest H20.” The event combined science and fantasy for the

supportive crowd, as it stepped out of vehicles onto a blue carpet

and entered a transformed lobby made into a shimmering ice cave.

Seated among the science exhibits, donors were entertained with a

live auction, while Turnip Rose, employing its elegant “silver dome”

service, served dinner.

The highlight of the affair was an emotional tribute to the late

scientist Arnold O. Beckman. David Rofsky, the chairman of the

Discovery Science Center’s board of directors, honored the life and

contribution of Beckman and thanked the assemblage for supporting

science education for some 225,000 students, teachers and visitors

who come to the center each year. The event was chaired by Lori

Parrish and underwritten in part by 35 generous sponsors including

Bank of America, Boeing, Conexant Systems, Inc. and the Arnold and

Mabel Beckman Foundation.

The Anti-Defamation League of Orange County/Long Beach held its

annual Appeals Brunch Sunday at the Four Seasons Hotel in Newport

Beach. Shelley and Tom Carl were honored with the Jerry Schwartz

Community Service Award and Rabbi Shelton J. Donnell received the

Leaders of Distinction Award for 2004.

Donnell is credited with being a role model in interfaith and

inter-ethnic relations.

“He is one of the principal organizers of the Catholic-Jewish

Dialogue, sponsored by the Catholic Diocese of Orange County and the

American Jewish Committee,” said Ruth Bridge of the Anti-Defamation

League.

The Carls are dedicated citizens, participating in a wide range of

civic and charitable causes.

Chaired by Nancy and Jim Linden, the brunch event was a coming

together of people of good will intent on spreading a message of

“justice and fair treatment for all citizens alike,” according to

Bridge.

* THE CROWD appears Thursdays and Saturdays.