HughE Dillon: The Bikini and Beach Ball

On Saturday night I attended a fabulous soiree hosted by Robert Marcin, and Christopher and Patrice DiGeorge at 10,000 square foot Marcin Manor called The Bikini and Beach Ball, which is their new summer party. (Every winter they hold the charity ball Snowballs and Champagne benefiting various organizations.)

ABOVE: Kristin Morris, Patricia DiGeorge, Robert and Pam Seeburger, and Robert Marcin.

ABOVE: Host Chris DiGeorge and his lovely daughter Samantha. The DiGeorges just returned from Ithaca, NY where college freshman Samantha signed up for her fall classes; she’ll be majoring in journalism and broadcasting. Chris tells me that he and a group of investors are working to bring the Morgan Hotel Organization to Atlantic City and are looking at a few properties including the Claridge Hotel. I think that would be great because it’s a wonderful art-deco space and one of A.C.’s original casinos.

ABOVE: Veronica Bersani, Raelle Katlin, Sasha O’Donnell, Megan Heaton, and Julie Bartolomeo.

ABOVE: An always colorful couple, Tania and Craig Drake.

ABOVE: Robin Stellwagen, Brett Rosenbloom and Manuella Magalhaes.

There were no couch potatoes at this party as the Sofa Kings entertained all night long.

ABOVE: Lira Barbosa, Lilliam Ribeiro, and Sharon Gray.

ABOVE: Brothers Dan and Jim Mortimer enjoyed the company of Sharon DeCarlo and Shannon Fairly.

Did I mention the smoke machine? ABOVE: Jill Rizen and Andy Henning. Others spotted Saturday night were Tamar and Steve Olitsky, Chase Lenfest, Beth Kollars, Don and Renee Freeman, Ted Derickson, Jean Marchetti, Arielle Johnson, Marianne Dias Papadopoulos, Michele Baymar, Rich Astrello, Julie Abramson, John Westrum, Justin Wineburgh and Allison Binder, and Carmen Tomassetti.

There were fireworks at midnight as the party moved to the pool and shifted into “What Happens After Midnight, Stays at the Marcin Manor.”

Rachel Moore, Maria Papadakis, Michelle Miller (above), and Arnold Milfort and I called it a night around 2 a.m., but the Sofa Kings and others were still going strong. They dedicated the Rolling Stones song “Sympathy for the Devil” to John Westrum.

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GAYBORHOOD 40TH ANNIVERSARY CEREMONY AND CELEBRATION
On July 10th, Mayor Nutter and the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) held a press conference to mark the 40th anniversary of the Gayborhood and kick off a two-week celebration called There’s No Place Like Home.

The celebration runs concurrently with QFest, Philadelphia’s LGBT film festival, which will debut the documentary film Welcome to the Gayborhood to commemorate the occasion. Also, check out Philadelphia magazine’s new guide to the Gayborhood called GPhilly.

ABOVE, left to right: Richard Bonds, director of social media at the Pennsylvania Tourism Office, Judy Applebaum, president of the Washington Square West Civic Association, Mayor Nutter, Jeff Guaracino, the GPTMC’s VP of communications, Gloria Casarez, LGBT Liason to the Mayor of Philadelphia, Desiree Hines, executive director of festivals and resident organist at Traverse Arts Project Philadelphia, and Mark Segal, publisher of the Philadelphia Gay News.