The Crowd: Circle 1000 brunch raises $1.3M for Hoag Family Cancer Institute
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This year’s Circle 1000 Founders Celebration Brunch recently welcomed some 300 advocates for cancer treatment, research and survival to a high-spirited Balboa Bay Resort ballroom alive with positivity. The annual event is surely one of the most important annual charitable gatherings on the Orange coast.
The electricity in the room transformed into financial largess. More than $1.3 million was raised and recognized over two hours during the morning in Newport Beach. The funds will be directed to the Hoag Family Cancer Institute.
Such success is in large part due to the professionalism and passion of a mother-daughter team of Mary V. Buckingham and Lacy Robertson co-chairing the 38th gathering of Circle 1000 patrons.
Cancer demonstrates no preference when it comes to age, gender, race, creed, country or economic status. It is an equal-opportunity killer. Years of scientific research has mattered. Survival rates for all types of cancer are rising, depending on circumstance.
As a testament to such important statistics and to the hope delivered via the sharing of personal survival stories, Circle 1000 has a tradition of calling out for members in the crowd who are cancer survivors to stand as the number of years they have survived for treatment, from one to more than 20, is announced. Then, to top off those successes shared, each year a special guest is invited to address the room and hit home a message that is like no other in the moment.
Following a message of hope from Hoag Hospital’s president and chief executive Robert Braithwaite and the introduction to the crowd of Dr. Steven R. Grossman, the new Grace E. Hoag medical director and endowed chair of the Hoag Family Cancer Institute, key speaker Mark Herzlich took the stage.
The 6-foot 7-inch former pro football player with the New York Giants’ 2012 Super Bowl championship team paced the stage with some nervous energy facing a room mostly comprised of women. Many in the front tables stared at the big man sporting a mohawk haircut and Herzlich took advantage of the attention, cracking a joke about it to break the ice.
His life story was no joke. Raised in a tight-knit family with a sports-oriented dad who coached him from a young age, Herzlich’s talent on the field grew during his high school years and then at Boston College, where he was on track for NFL consideration. A diagnosis of Ewing’s sarcoma in his junior year derailed that track, and his life. Doctors warned that the bone cancer, if curable, would disallow a career in sports. There was as little as a 10% chance of survival.
Herzlich said he told the doctors, “I will survive. I will do what I need to do. I will play again.”
More than a year of arduous treatment and another year of building his strength and ability brought him back to football. He graduated from Boston College and, remarkably, made it into the NFL. Today, the former All-American defensive linebacker who retired from the New York Giants in 2014 is a teacher, married and raising kids in his new home state of Florida. He has penned a memoir titled “What it Takes: Fighting for My Life and My Love of the Game.”
A standing ovation erupted from his audience when he finished speaking. Among the crowd were Circle 1000 donors Michelle Linovitz, Lori McKay with daughter Katie Maggard, Lynette Berg, Lori Herbert with daughter Lauren Franke, Sue Hagestad, Jackie Glass, Shanel Wheeler, Janet Curci, Lin Auer, Connie Peterson Pavlovich, Marianne Larkin, Hyla Bertea, Jamie Shepherdson, Ginny Ueberroth, Martha Moonoh Warlaumont, Vicki Booth and Mary O. Buckingham.
For more information about Circle 1000, visit hoaghospitalfoundation.org/circle1000.
The cars were the stars
It was an outdoor gallery of industrial art when the 18th annual Balboa Bay Resort and Club car show welcomed more than 1,500 community automotive enthusiasts on Father’s Day, free of charge, as a “love letter to the city of Newport Beach,” in the words of John Wortmann, chairman of the Board of Governors of Balboa Bay Club.
Wortmann was joined by Cindy Racco, general director of Balboa Bay Resort; Melanie Hertrick, in charge of special events; and an entire staff who made the show possible.
The massive display arranged on the upper deck parking structure of the resort hotel facing the Newport Harbor bayfront was made possible by contributing sponsors, including Maguire, Ferrari Newport Beach, Bentley and Porsche, Newport Beach, Jim Dunn of Premiere 7 Car Wash, Noel Hamilton of 5th 3rd Bank and the Pickup/Martin Family Ownership of Balboa Bay Resort and Club.
Two prominent Newport Beach families received recognition with the 2025 Car Show Icon Awards. The Billy Lyon family and the Craig Barto family smiled for the cameras with with their winning automobile entries. Also recognized were Jordan Family Classic Cars with their 1939 Oberle race car that was named Favorite Car in Show as well as their 1950 Ford Woody that claimed a BBC Governor’s Choice Award. Also receiving Governor’s Choice honors were Gary Williams with his 1965 356 SC Porsche, Harry Lekites with a 1967 Chevy Corvette, Jorge Robledo with a 1949 custom Mercury and David Semas,who showed his 1949 Chevy 3100 pickup truck.
Honored with the Sexiest Car Award was Sam Borno, showing his 2015 LA Ferrari; Fast & Furious — Simon Mauisse, with a 1927 35B Bugatti; Best Classic Car in Show — Bret Ross, showing a 1948 deluxe Chevy sports coupe; Chairman’s Award — John Word, a 1967 Chevy Corvette; Best Paint — Steve Schmidt, presenting his 1932 Ford hot rod; Diamond Trophy — John Bemis, with his 1952 300 S Mercedes; Exotic Award — David Heath, with a 2015 Aston Martin Superleggera all-custom press car; Best Muscle Car — Angel Marchand, with a 1970 Plymouth Cuda; Best British Car — Craig Barto, showing a 1962 Bentley Continental coupe; Best Stitch/ Interior Award — Paul Brown, 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air, and Sam Borno’s Black Badge Rolls Royce was named Best Luxury Car.
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