American Red Cross

Heinz Wilden A memorial service for former Newport Beach resident Heinz Wilden will be at 10 a.m. today at Our Lady Queen of Angels in Newport Beach. Born in Germany, Mr. Wilden lived in Newport Beach for 34 years, where he was president of a chemical-distribution and personal-care-products company. He died Sept. 8 of pneumonia at the age of 74. Mr. Wilden is survived by his wife, Billie Wilden; his brother, Hans Wilden; his son, Thomas Wilden; his daughter, Susan Baron; and two grandchildren.

By now everyone has seen the pictures and read the news accounts of the devastation that has resulted on the Gulf Coast from Hurricane Katrina. Many dead, thousands homeless, businesses ruined, families torn apart -- sickness and disease will follow. In fact, whether it's been a sporting event, network TV show, telethon or news program, everywhere you seemed to turn over the past week or so, people have been encouraging donations for the vastly needed relief effort.

On the heels of the destruction in the Gulf Coast following Hurricane Katrina, Mesa Verde Country Club is joining forces to aid victims of the catastrophe with a golf fundraiser tournament on Sept. 22 with a 1 p.m. shotgun start. All greens fees of $250 will be donated to the American Red Cross. Mesa Verde has played host to several professional and United States Golf Association tournaments, including the Toshiba Senior Classic in 1995, LPGA Tour events and PGA Tour events.

o7The following Newport-Mesa locations are accepting donations for Hurricane Katrina victims:f7 NEWPORT-MESA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT 2985-A Bear St. Costa Mesa All students, parents and employees of the district are invited to contribute to the annual pledge drive, held to benefit the hurricane victims this year. District offices are open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Make checks payable to the American Red Cross.

The grill was hot and the sodas were plenty. What looked like a scene from a beachside barbecue was actually a blood drive -- lifeguard style. Newport Beach Lifeguards sponsored a blood drive Friday, drawing in residents and tourists who donated 45-minutes of their time to give blood, some of which may go to the New Orleans area to help Hurricane Katrina survivors. The blood drive, held at the lifeguard headquarters at the base of the Newport Pier, lasted hours.

As the destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina continues to disrupt the lives of people on the Gulf Coast, Costa Mesa residents Billy Jack Ray and Bob Watts are doing their part to help. Ray, 61, is stationed in a suburban Virginia office, receiving phone calls from those who are living in storm-ravaged parts of the South. Watts is also working at the facility, Ray said. They are joining thousands of volunteers who are part of the American Red Cross' largest-ever relief project.

Jeff Benson Effects of the 9.0 earthquake and tsunami in Southern Asia continue to touch UC Irvine's students and faculty a month later. To commemorate the tsunami's one-month anniversary, a dozen student organizations have joined forces for the campus' "Tsunami Relief Week," which began Monday and ends today. A candlelight vigil will be held at 7 p.m. tonight at the administration flagpole, accompanied by musical performances and short speeches about the relief effort and the need for donations.

Area woman named No. 1 philanthropist Johanna Bracken, president of Costa Mesa direct marketing firm Rauxa Direct, was named "Philanthropist of the Year" last week by the Greater Long Beach chapter of the American Red Cross Bracken, who serves on the charity's board of directors, was one of the chapter's leading donors in 2004, chapter chief executive Nancy Kindelan said. Bracken has enlisted Rauxa employees to aid Red Cross efforts. In December, Rauxa staffers were the largest supporters of a drive to collect socks for the homeless by donating 568 pairs.

Jeff Benson It may have taken the solemn expressions of once-rival presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton on national television to make it happen, but the seeds of tsunami relief are being sewn locally. School board President Serene Stokes and other officials are trying to do their part to help those in Asia whose homelands were ravaged by a tsunami triggered Dec. 26 by an earthquake. Thailand, Sri Lanka, the Indonesian island of Sumatra and parts of India all suffered under the devastation.

School to name new center UC Irvine will celebrate the naming and future home of the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences today. A campus community reception will take place at 2 p.m. near the intersection of East Peltason and Los Trancos, on the University Club lawn in the direction of Aldrich Park. For a campus map, go to http://www.uci.edu/campusmap. Bren Hall, to be the school's main building, will be a six-story research and classroom facility and is scheduled for completion in 2006.