R S V P / ORANGE COUNTY : From Cirque . . . With Love : From O.C. to New York, ‘Alegria’ and Childhelp Give Kids Joy

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First there was the San Francisco opening of the new Cirque du Soleil to benefit Childhelp USA, a national organization dedicated to the prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect.

Then there were openings in San Jose and Santa Monica and--last week--Costa Mesa. Next, it will be a New York performance of Cirque’s new “Alegria” extravaganza for Childhelp, which was founded in 1959 by Sara O’Meara and Yvonne Fedderson. Who is working with Childhelp to pull off the Big Apple benefit on April 12? Georgette Mosbacher, one of New York’s premiere hostesses, confided Barbara Ganahl, president of Childhelp’s Orange County chapter. “We’ve been on the phone. She really cares about helping children.”

Ganahl and about a dozen other supporters from the local chapter plan to attend the New York benefit, where 1,000 seats will be available for the charity. “We wouldn’t miss it,” she said.

Before boarding the little buses that whisked them last week to the cirque at South Coast Plaza, Childhelp’s major donors were honored at a posh dinner at the Center Club.

Chairing the $3,000-per-table feast was Patti Edwards, wife of Jim Edwards, whose father, W. James Edwards Jr., founded Edwards Theaters.

Mingling with guests before they settled down to salads topped with tiny cheese souffles and a main course of veal and prawns, Patti Edwards praised her father-in-law, honorary chairman of the benefit opening.

“He has never before allowed anyone to honor him,” said Patti Edwards, who was dressed in a perfectly cut, daffodil-colored suit. The 88-year-old Edwards likes to keep things very low-key. “But I begged him and he agreed, for the children.”

As ways and means chairwoman of the local chapter of Childhelp, Patti Edwards regularly orchestrates benefits to help support the organization’s residential treatment center in Beaumont and its group homes in Orange County. Last week’s event raised about $180,000.

“I think the children who have been so unloved deserve the love they receive from Childhelp USA,” she said. “We are trying to break the chain of abuse. If the children don’t get help, love, they will grow up to abuse their own children.”

Added Ganahl: “Childhelp is growing around the country, and we have mixed feelings about bragging about that. It means there is a need, a desperate need.”

After they saw Cirque, supporters headed over to Crystal Court at South Coast Plaza for a late supper catered by 17 restaurants, including Wolfgang Puck Cafe, Spiga, Gustaf Anders and Antonello’s.

Also among guests were Donna Crean, Matt and Tina Schafnitz, Peter Ganahl, Mary Roosevelt, Hans and Charlene Prager, Jim and Sharon Henwood, Alan Rypinski and Ted and Mary Jane Simpkins.

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AIDS WALK benefit: Being HIV positive hasn’t kept Drew Barras down. The Laguna Beach veterinarian was among the few hundred supporters of AIDS Walk Orange County who attended a benefit bash at Planet Hollywood following a night at Cirque du Soleil last week.

“I lead a happy life,” said Barras, 42. “It is only during the past two months that it has been difficult.”

With the courage that has become his trademark, Barras confided that he “only has about six months” to live.

“I just spent three or four years watching my spouse die and then a couple of years recovering from that myself.

“I really don’t think about what’s ahead. I’m not one to dwell on it. I see the doctor, take my pills and go on with my life.”

For several years, AIDS Walk Orange County has been one of the focuses of his life. Funds raised from the annual event are given to Orange County agencies that provide services for AIDS patients.

“I’m one of the lucky ones,” Barras said. “My medical insurance has really been there for me. But there are so many others who can’t afford help, even medication. AIDS Walk is there to help them.”

This year’s event is scheduled for June 4 at UC Irvine. “Last year, 9,000 people participated in our 10K,” said Joann Ruden, executive director of AIDS Walk. “And we made $380,000--all of which we turned around and gave to AIDS agencies.”

As of November last year, 3,569 cases of AIDs had been reported in Orange County during the past 10 years, Ruden said. “Two thousand patients have died,” she said.

For information about AIDS Walk, call (714) 955-1400.