A nine-woman choral group, ranging in age from 79 to 98, and all residents of the Heritage Pointe Jewish home for the aged, will enliven the 14th annual Chanukah fundraising gala, to be held Nov. 17 at Irvine’s Hyatt Regency.
Heritage Pointe President Fred Forster and his wife, Aviva, the gala’s honorees, offered a twinkle of their own with an unusual auction prize: dinner for 10 in their Corona del Mar home, a slide show of photos from the Hubble space telescope and — weather permitting — telescopic viewing of Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars.
Phyllis Rodgers, the home’s vice president, and her husband, Barry, also donated a five-night vineyard vacation at their Sonoma County winery, Chateau Felice.
Organizers aim to raise $200,000, which would be a 15 percent increase over last year. Funds will go toward $800,000 in annual subsidies that the home provides to one-third of its 190 residents. “It’s the only Jewish home between L.A. and San Diego,” said Pamela S. Beunk, development director for the Mission Viejo facility, which has 176 apartments for independent and assisted living. The subsidy can cover housing or health-care costs.
The home is also about two-thirds toward a separate $1.2 million goal that is funding renovations presently underway at the home.
For more information, call (949) 364-9685.
