HUNTINGTON BEACH : Organizers of Charity Cruise Regroup

Over the past 30 years, the Huntington Harbour Philharmonic Committee has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars with its holiday Cruise of Lights, donating the money to music education programs at public and private schools across the county.

But with private operators now offering competing cruises for profit, philharmonic officials fear that their proceeds from the tours, which offer views of holiday lights and decorations at homes along Huntington Harbour’s waterways, will shrink.

“It’s definitely causing us concern,” said Judith Ivey, committee chairwoman. “There are a half-dozen enterprises coming into the harbor, which does take away from the Cruise of Lights sales.”

To counter the competition, the philharmonic committee has embarked on a marketing campaign to let the public know that proceeds from its ticket sales go to charity, not business, Ivey said. “We’ve learned we have to operate like a business and not like a bunch of ladies raising money for a nice cause,” said Joanne Fernbach, a committee member.

One of the competitors, general manager Robert Forster, said his Star Party Cruises of Long Beach is just giving people a choice. “We’re offering an alternative from a different location,” he said. “You’ve got to have some free enterprise.”

Forster charges $10 a ticket for the harbor cruise and offers food and drinks on his new 300-passenger, 100-foot yacht.

To compete with that, the 33rd annual Cruise of Lights, Dec. 13 through Dec. 21, is charging $10 Friday through Sunday, $8.50 on weekdays and $5 for children.

Fernbach said the Cruise of Lights, which began in December, 1962, has grown steadily, with more residents decking out their homes each year in support of a good cause, and their efforts, in turn, drawing more cruise customers.

Last year’s event brought in $108,000 for schools, Fernbach said, but was not a sellout as previous years’ tours had been. “We don’t know how much is due to the economy or to the other tour boats,” she said.