Balboa Bay Club

An evening in Newport Coast attracted Orange County VIPs to an intimate yet serious salon gathering on behalf of the local Make-A-Wish Foundation. The private gathering raised $100,000 in donations from guests, including Angels President and Chairman Dennis Kuhl , Irvine Co. Vice President Steve Friedlander and his wife, Marie , and Montage Resort General Manager Todd Orlich and his wife, Victoria . Hosted by make-A-Wish board members Daniel Kim and Joel Solomon , the event was billed as the 2012 Inaugural Cornerstone.

SATURDAY Flea Market The Pelican Courtyard Flea Market is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the second Saturday of each month. The event is at 124 Tustin Ave., Mariners Mile section of Newport Beach. For more information, visit http://www.thepelicancourtyard.com. UCI Arboretum Plant Sale The UC Irvine Arboretum hosts a plant sale from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The arboretum is south of the corner of Campus Drive and Jamboree Road. Call (949) 824-5833 for more information. Flying 'Fuddy Duddy' A World War II vintage B-17 Flying Fortress, also known as "Fuddy Duddy," will be taking to the skies above the Lyon Air Museum as part of its "History Takes Flight" program.

Celebrating in great style the Chinese New Year 4710, the Year of the Water Dragon, hostess Elizabeth An of AnQi in South Coast Plaza invited some 50 local VIPs to a luncheon in her private dining room. An was joined by David Grant and Werner Escher of South Coast Plaza hosting the affair at a spectacular banquet table. It was festooned with multiple arrangements of red blossoms, all symbolizing good luck in the coming year. Dining publicist to the stars Lee Healy greeted arriving patrons, including the local legend Gloria Zigner prior to luncheon service, which consisted of four courses, each designed to bless the Year of the Water Dragon with good fortune.

What do you do when it turns out a wealthy investor can't actually come up with $174.5 million as promised? If you're Beverly Ray Parkhurst, who owns the landmark Balboa Bay Club and Resort in Newport Beach, you call off your planned sale of the company to Winston Chung of Hong Kong and entertain other offers, as the Times reported Tuesday. And with your financials improving, you may decide to hold off on a sale altogether for now, a top club official said. Chung, a battery and electric-vehicle entrepreneur, attracted considerable attention over the last two years by investing in Southern California specialty-vehicle makers and promising to establish a green transportation industry in the Southland.

A deal to sell the Balboa Bay Club and Newport Beach Country Club to a wealthy Hong Kong businessman has collapsed. The $174.5-million deal for the combination yacht club and hotel and its sister Newport Beach Country Club was called off Jan. 13. Investor Winston Chung never came up with the money as agreed, forfeiting what city documents show was a nonrefundable $4-million down payment. "We were told he was having difficulty moving money out of China," David Wooten, chief executive of the clubs, said Monday.

Orange County has more good causes per capita than just about any community in the nation. Recently, an athlete named Brian Hutchison decided to create a non-profit foundation to help others, based on his own personal experience with traumatic brain injury, known as TBI. Two years ago, Hutchison suffered a traumatic brain injury while playing softball. The team's most valuable player, Hutchison made an extended reach for a fly ball that resulted in a life threatening injury to his head.

Meredith Toews and Drew Lorentzen Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell Thiessen of Newport Coast joyfully announce the marriage of their daughter, Meredith Leigh-Anne Toews, to Drew Gregory Lorentzen, son of Terry and Debbie Lorentzen of Newport Beach. The wedding was held in the late afternoon on September 4 at Saint Andrews Presbyterian Church and followed by a dinner reception at the Balboa Bay Club in Newport Beach. The bride wore an ivory lace gown. Drew and Meredith are alumni of Newport Harbor High School in Newport Beach.

Newport Beach traffic may be impacted while the Orange County Sanitation District performs construction on West Coast Highway. A contractor will trench across the highway starting Monday, and construction will stretch between Tustin Avenue and the Balboa Bay Club entrance, according to the district's website . The construction may take three weeks. Traffic in the area will be reduced to one lane in each direction, and noisier activities are scheduled between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. to reduce impact on the community, the district said.

What is summer in Newport without a great beach party? The Noble Viking Charities, a fraternity of local gents, answered that question with style, throwing their annual summer beach bash. A sold-out crowd of more than 200 guests converged upon the beach and lawn of The Balboa Bay Club & Resort for a night under the stars with dinner and dancing by the shore. Executive Chef Josef Lageder and his culinary team served a duet of beef tenderloin and Atlantic salmon accompanied by wines donated by Bianchi Vineyards.