R S V P / ORANGE COUNTY : Party-Goers on a French Roll at Benefit

To celebrate France’s 203rd anniversary of the storming of the Bastille, 700 people stormed the Chanteclair restaurant in Irvine Friday for a French fete to fight child abuse.

The Orange County Chapter of Childhelp USA celebrated Bastille Day in the true French manner, with fine food, wine and dance--including a rowdy performance by cancan dancers. The $30-per-person dinner and silent auction was expected to raise more than $20,000 for Childhelp, a nonprofit group dedicated to the research, treatment and prevention of child abuse and neglect.

Patriotic Party

Decked out in red, white and blue, the Chanteclair looked like it was celebrating the Fourth of July.

“Because the Bastille party falls so close to the Fourth, it’s easy to find decorations,” joked Jacquie Casey, event chairwoman.

Just so guests would know which holiday they were celebrating, a small replica of the Eiffel Tower and French flags were set up outside the restaurant. In the spirit of the day, many of the women dressed in French colors--a blue lace dress, red leather strapless number and a white catsuit were spotted in the crowd.

Chanteclair has held a Bastille Day celebration for seven years, said Casey, whose husband, Michael, is president of the El Torito restaurant chain and Chanteclair.

“We have a lot of French employees at Chanteclair and they knew that El Torito celebrated Cinco de Mayo, so they wanted equal time,” she said.

The Bastille Day celebration turned into a fund raiser for Childhelp three years ago after Jacquie Casey got involved with the group.

“It’s been a perfect marriage,” said Barbara Ganahl, vice president of Childhelp. “This has been our home away from home.”

French Feast

Chanteclair was filled with red, white and blue balloons for the occasion, and tables were covered in red- and blue-checked cloth with red flowers for centerpieces.

Dining stations featuring French specialties from the kitchen of chef Byron Gemmell were set up throughout the restaurant. In the grand salon, a buffet table graced with a massive ice sculpture engraved with the Childhelp logo was loaded with trout stuffed with spinach, pork tenderloin with apricot sauce, scalloped potatoes and capon with morrel-madeira sauce.

Assorted caviars, pates, seafood canapes, shrimp, crab and oysters were served in the library while chicken and sausages were grilled on the patio. The Boudoir was a favorite stop for many guests--that’s where they served dessert, including a rich chocolate cake adorned with raspberries, strawberries Chanteclair, mini creme brulees and assorted fruit tarts.

Helping Children

Proceeds from the gala will go to the Village of Childhelp USA, a residential treatment center for abused children in Beaumont.

“We need fund raisers like this more than ever to offset the (state) budget cuts,” said Anna Petruzzelli, president of the Orange County chapter of Childhelp.

Childhelp recently began receiving IOUs from the state and its state funds have been cut by $748,000.

“Every time I think I’m too tired to blow up another balloon, I just think of that number,” Jacquie Casey said.

Other party-goers were Jay and Pam Arnett, Shell Benesch, Howard and Beth Bidna, Ove and Renate Carlsson, Ernie and Delores Duncan, Lynn Dowers, Patty Edwards, Peter Ganahl, Cory and Katherine Meredith, Pat Petruzzelli, Matt and Tina Schafnitz, Ted and Mary Jean Simpkins and Tani Stevens.