At the check-in table just inside the Eagle’s Nest Clubhouse, those arriving received an auction bidder’s number, a plastic cup to hold their gaming chips and $300 in “fun money” to get started at the gaming tables.
After check-in, they could chose to turn left for bingo, turn right for the main playing room — or head straight down the hallway through both sections of the Chinese auction to the no-host bar at the far end.
(In a Chinese auction, participants put a ticket in an item’s corresponding ticket holder — the more tickets from a single participant, the greater the odds that the particular participant will win the item. Tickets for the Chinese auction were available for cash purchase. Participants could also turn in their gaming chips to a dealer for a receipt, which could then be swapped for Chinese auction tickets.)
One basket in section two of the Chinese auction held heaping helpings of coffee and mugs. Another item included a musical jewelry box with a set of metal discs that allowed it to play different musical selections.
Section one offered a chance to win fine jewelry or paintings or elegant decorative items.
Inside the main playing room, a silent auction lined one wall. Trojan fans could bid on items celebrating Mark Sanchez. A twisted strand of freshwater pearls with a gold clasp tempted jewelry lovers. An unusual hand-carved teeter-totter would have stood out in any small child’s playroom.
Self-serve buffet stations lined two more walls.
A deejay at the front kept up a constant stream of music by Nat King Cole, Dean Martin, and Frank Sinatra — fun to just listen, and highly danceable.
Two rows of round tables at each end allowed participants to sit, nosh and chat.
Across the center of the room, an array of gaming tables allowed players to take part in a Texas Hold ’Em tournament, send dice flying at craps or figure the odds at blackjack. (The games were provided by World Class Casino.)
Precious Life would like to send special thanks to their volunteers for helping to make the night possible:
- Bingo – Melissa Garcia and Amada Cagle
- Sound and music – Kevin Greening
- Registration – Steve and Nancy Stock
- Auction Knight Software – Ed Marvin
- Marty Vezziti and the Knights of Columbus
- Set-up and evening support – Wilson High School Photography PLS Club
- Photography – Bob and Tammy Krause
Flying dice at the craps table during the Straight from the Heart fundraiser for Precious Life Shelter.
Eagle’s Nest Clubhouse is located at 5660 Orangewood Ave. in Cypress, on the grounds of the Navy Golf Course.
Precious Life Shelter is a residential supportive services program for homeless pregnant adult women.
Thanks go to Sir Speedy Printing and Marketing Services of Los Alamitos for printing the event program.
Financial donors
Precious Life would like to thank the following financial donors:
- E.M. Ambrosio
- Rose Angiuli
- Ron and Marilyn Bates
- Carol Beck
- Bruce Burhner
- Ryan and Audrey houra
- Charles and Joycelyn Close
- Timothy and Colleen Conley
- Dorothea Dillenbeck
- Louis and Pam Fetzer
- Dean and Wendy Grose
- Charlotte Grout
- Donald and Sherryl Hemphill
- Los Alamitos Medical Center
- Davis Maynard
- Thomas and Kay Minahan
- Sean and Amy Payne
- Stephan Pekar
- Louis and Roselin Sanna
- Mike and Fran Sawdei
- Andrea Thomas
- Seacrest Insurance
- Mary Anne VenDerLinden
A centerpiece on a dining table at the Precious Life Straight from the Heart fundraiser.
Donors
Precious Life would like to thank the following donors:
- AA-1 Painting Service, Inc.
- Angel Baseball Club
- California Pizza Kitchen
- Carpenters Performing Arts Center
- Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts
- CHARIS
- Cheesecake Factory
- Complexions Day Spa
- Costco – Cypress
- Dave and Buster’s of Orange
- Desert Willow Golf Resort
- Discovery Science Center
- Disneyland Resort
- Domenico’s Italian Kitchen
- Dominic’s Ristorante Italian
- Donald and Sherry Hemphill
- Downey Civic Light Opera
- El Pollo Loco
- Embassy Suites Anaheim North
- Festival of Arts Laguna Beach
- Flightdeck Air Combat Center
- Friends of the Santa Ana Zoo
- Golf ‘N’ Stuff
- Graver Olive House
- Greg and Pamela Martin
- Hof’s Hut Restaurant and Bakery
- Hornblower Cruises and Events
- Howard’s
- IMPROV Brea
- Indulgence Day Spa
- In-N-Out Burgers
- Jack Randall Photography and Video
- International City Theatre
- Jake and Judy DeRuyter
- K1 Speed
- Karen’s Kreations
- Knott’s Berry Farm
- La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
- Long Beach Marriot
- Los Alamitos Medical Center
- Los Alamitos Race Course
- Marty and Susan Karpiel
- Mike Gillmore Photography
- Musical Theatre West – Long Beach
- Orange County Museum of Art
- Pacific Park
- Pictures in Crystal
- Robert W. Senske, Jr.
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
- Rossmoor Car Wash
- San Diego Zoo Global
- SeaWorld San Diego
- Shenandoah at the Arbor
- South Coast Repertory
- Spirit Cruises
- Standing Ovation Flower Gallery
- Target – Cypress
- Terry Hackett
- The Balboa Bay Club and Resort
- The Curtis Theatre
- The Pacific Inn
- Theresa Murphy
- Tut-Babouch, Inc.
Featured photo
A friendly blackjack dealer at the Precious Life Straight from the Heart fundraiser helped players figure out not just the rules of the game but also the customs, like how to ask for more cards (tap the table top) or that show that you were standing pat (wave a flat hand over your cards).
Related articles
- Precious Life Shelter calls for raffle and silent auction donations (oc-breeze.com)
- Precious Life Thrift Shop continues its 20th Anniversary sales spectacular (oc-breeze.com)
- Dash for We Care at Rossmoor Community Festival (oc-breeze.com)
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