Dec 10, 2006

Filoli celebrates season in its 'Winter Garden'

By Janet Duca Norton / Society Columnist

"Gifts from the Winter Garden" was the theme of the 24th annual weeklong holiday fundraising event at Filoli in Woodside. Beginning with a first-time premier access shopping evening on Nov. 24, the week featured shopping days with entertainment by local student music groups, brunch buffets, a luncheon with Santa and Mrs. Claus and a gala dinner dance.

This year's theme showcased the famous Filoli greenhouse, which was designed and built in 1921 by premier greenhouse builders Bakewell and Brown. The traditional glass conservatory houses exotic plants, which were favorites of the Bourn family, who built the estate, and second owner Lurline Roth, who collected orchids and begonias.

A large replica of the greenhouse was featured center stage in the Visitor Center, and smaller iron terrariums filled with ferns, white cyclamen and chartreuse green moss were popular gift items.

The opening night shopping extravaganza was a sold-out success. Around 500 guests sampled hors d'oeuvres by award-winning chef Jesse Cool; viewed gorgeous, glittering trees and decorations throughout the house and Visitors Center; and filled shopping bags to the brim with ornaments, decorations, crafts, and estate-packaged culinary items such as spices, vinegars and olive oils.

A glimpse of the Roth family traditions was provided by daughter Lurline Roth Coonan, who used the family's china and designed the elegant centerpiece for the Christmas dining table. She and her twin sister Berenice Spalding grew up in the mansion.

About 135 guests attended a VIP preview reception honoring major donors and members of the Filoli boards: the Governing Board and Friends of Filoli.

Governing Board members included president Connie Ridder, Ron and Barb Peyton, Andrea and Bill Johnston, Barbara and Win Seipp with his parents Ed and Anne Seipp, Suzanne Loomis, and Bob French and his wife Connie, a Friends of Filoli member.

Friends of Filoli President Sue Givens greeted her successors Mary Lynn Carwardine (2000) and Irene Bluth (2001), board member Vanessa Roach and her sister Alexandra and mother Pam Brandin, and California State Senator Jackie Speier.

Everyone particularly liked the salute to Governing Board member Chuck Huggins, retired CEO of See's Candies, that featured a large display of See's Candies in Filoli's kitchen. It was a well-kept secret, and he was very surprised when he and his wife Donna arrived at the dinner dance the next evening.

Filoli is a property of the National Trust for Historical Preservation. The Filoli Center, Friends of Filoli and private donations are the source of funding for the preservation and conservation of the 43-room, modified Georgian mansion and its 16 acres of world-class English-renaissance gardens.



TIFFANY & CO. CELEBRATES 10th ANNIVERSARY AT STANFORD

Tiffany & Co. celebrated the newly designed store and its 10th anniversary at Stanford Shopping Center with a cocktail reception honoring the Stanford Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Tiffany's director Bebe Kokab welcomed about 75 guests to the sparkling shopping gala on Nov. 28. It was a perfect 10; In honor of the 10th anniversary, Tiffany & Co. donated 10 percent of the evening's sales, which totaled $10,000, to the new cancer center. Tiffany has had a close association with Stanford dating back to the original store opening when the beneficiary was the Stanford Medical Center.

Community leaders, Tiffany customers and a group of Stanford representatives saluted Stanford Cancer Center Council members Fran Codspoti, Connie Eisenstat and Roger Sippl. The importance of the new center was illustrated by Sippl's moving account of his successful battle with lymphoma.

Seen applauding were Mervin and Roz Morris, Skip and Rhea Friend, Dr. Beverly Mitchell, Dr. Don Nielsen, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital CEO Martha Kanter, and Northern California Cancer Center Board chairman Sam Bronfman and his wife Kelly.

The new elegant wood-paneled store with high ceilings and mirrored walls is a replica of the famous New York flagship store.

Melissa Badger, Charlene Cogan and Bella Schneider admired the special Tiffany Captivating Color collection, which was flown in for the event and featured one-of-a-kind large sparkling pieces.

And yes, many people left with Tiffany shopping bags. It was a win-win for everybody.