THE CROWD:Newport Breakers barbecue place to be

The Newport Beach Breakers Tennis Tournament at Newport Beach Country Club is surely one of the great social events of the summer on the Orange Coast. Tonight, a barbecue dinner party will introduce the team to the local crowd with a cocktail reception on center court. Coach Trevor Kronemann and roster players Lauren Albanese, Ramon Delgado, Rich Leach and Michaela Pastikova will mingle with local tennis lovers.

The live auction will benefit Hoag Hospital and will include a special travel package to New York for the U.S. Open, where the lucky recipients will be treated to seats in Billie Jean King’s private suite.

Delgado has been one of the major stars of the Newport Beach Breakers, dazzling the tennis crowd with his 5-0 men’s singles rout, which led the Breakers to a 20-15 win in the season opener against the Sacramento Capitols. Stars on the circuit include Anna Kournikova, Pete Sampras and, on July 22, superstar Venus Williams and the Philadelphia Freedoms are set to play on the Newport Beach courts.

The World Team Tennis Pro League is in its 32nd season of play. It was created in the early 1970s by Billie Jean King and Larry King with the goal of establishing a unique gender-balanced team concept in tennis. Eleven teams battle for the King trophy, and the two top teams from both the Western and Eastern conferences will advance to the World Team Tennis Championship July 27 to 29 in Roseville, following the conclusion of the Newport Beach play. For the next 10 days, the Breakers is the place to see and be seen.

A very special day for brides will take place Aug. 5 at the Mon Amie Bridal Salon in Costa Mesa. The first 100 brides who are either soldiers or are engaged to soldiers who enter the salon will be given a free wedding gown. The military bride gown giveaway will begin at 10:30 a.m. To qualify, brides must be engaged or be on active duty themselves and/or have a fiancé on active duty in the military. For more information, call Mon Amie at (714) 546-5700 or e-mail [email protected].

The 17th Assistance League of Newport Mesa Medallion Debutante Ball is set to unfold next Sunday at the Balboa Bay Club and Resort in Newport Beach. Eight young women will be presented to society, including Hayley Anne Ayres, Taylor Rae Bryson, Kaitlin Danielle Gritsch, Holly Ann Van Hiel, Robin Mae Ibbetson, Kacie Ann O’Brien, Kelly Ann Parker and Jennifer Lauren Peart. Over the past four years, during their high school careers, the girls have contributed more than 1,000 hours toward the Assistance League’s goal of 40,000 annual volunteer hours in the Newport Mesa community. Robert Dale Johnston will serve as the evening’s master of ceremonies. The evening will be chaired by Nancy Kelly and a committee of local women dedicated to the advancement of the values and projects associated with the Assistance League. For more information, call (949) 645-6929.

Friends of the Oasis Senior Center has formed a nonprofit organization to raise needed building funds for the senior community center. Oasis has recently joined forces with Newport Beach and Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian to coordinate fundraising efforts that will eventually lead to the building of a new Oasis Senior Center. Co-chaired by Evelyn Hart, former mayor of Newport Beach, and Dr. Gwyn Parry, director of community medicine at Hoag, a committee is being formed to examine the need for the expansion project. Architect Robert R. Coffee and Associates is working on a proposed building plan for committee review. The Oasis Senior Center is dedicated to supporting the local senior community. Friends of Oasis is the nonprofit organization providing financial and volunteer support to the center. To find out more, please contact Katherine Rice at Hoag Hospital at [email protected].

The Interior Designers Institute of Newport Beach had its 2007 commencement and awards ceremony recently at the Irvine Marriott and Resort. The gala event attracted 450 graduates, their families and friends, and the faculty of the Institute. The highlight of the graduation was an address by Pamela Light, an award-winning interior designer and president of the International Interior Design Assn. In the crowd were Judy Deaton, executive director of the Newport Beach Interior Designers Institute, Paul Rice and Sharon Deaton.

A recent Saturday evening in Laguna Beach at the Wendt Gallery benefited the Festival of Children Foundation, Costa Mesa. This summer show and extravaganza showcased a celebration of nationally recognized artists, including some 200 new works by 60 artists with proceeds benefiting the work of the Festival of Children Foundation. The Foundation is one of the passions of the very charitable Sandy Segerstrom Daniels. Her concept was to bring together the many diverse organizations that benefit children and present them to the public in an organized festival to inform about the many services and opportunities available in Orange County to children and their parents. The Segerstrom family business, South Coast Plaza, has hosted the annual Festival of Children event for the past several years. Artist Joseph Todorovitch’s oil painting of children was donated for a raffle auction benefiting the foundation. For more information on the work of the Festival of Children, call (714) 438-3287, or e-mail [email protected].