Social Circuit, Dec. 2, 2009

The 130th Philadelphia Charity Ball, chaired by the ball's board president, D. Christopher Le Vine, was held Friday at the Union League. Resplendent in long white dresses and gloves, the ball's three debutantes were Marianna Del Raso of Devon, Kelley Calvert Moore of Haverford, and Le Vine's daughter, Virginia Grey Le Vine of Bryn Mawr. Virginia is the granddaughter of Elizabeth Kelly Le Vine, the late sister of Grace Kelly. Allison Eleuthera Smith of Haverford also was listed as a debutante but was unable to return from Rome where she is attending school.

The white-tie evening for nearly 400 guests began with a cocktail reception and continued with dinner, dancing to Peter Duchin and his Orchestra until 1:30 a.m., the presentation of the debutantes, and a midnight breakfast. After dinner and before the presentation, 14 students from the Gesu School showed off their ballroom dancing skills, exhibiting a handful of styles that included the merengue and fox trot. Founded in 1881 to benefit local charities, the ball raised funds for Gesu.

The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts celebrated the wines and food of Chile Nov. 14 at its 11th annual Bacchanal! Wine Auction and Gala. José Goñi, the Chilean ambassador to the United States, and his wife, Loreto Leyton, were among the 320 guests at the black-tie event. The top-selling auction items were three bottles of Petrus 1975, which went for $7,000; lunch, a tour of the Chilean winery Viña Montes in Santa Cruz with the winery's chairman, and a two-night stay at the Hotel Santa Cruz, which sold twice for $8,000; and dinner for 12 at the home of academy chairman Donald R. Caldwell, paired with wine from Caldwell's personal wine cellar, also selling twice for $8,000. The gala raised $405,000 in support of scholarships for PAFA students.

The Auxiliary of Albert Einstein Healthcare Network set a new fund-raising record, more than $1.2 million, at its 57th annual Harvest Ball Nov. 7 at the Park Hyatt at the Bellevue. The black-tie gala for more than 700 guests honored Dr. Robert G. Somers, past chair of the department of surgery at Einstein, and his wife, Ronnie. Proceeds from the event will go toward establishing the Robert G. Somers chair at the hospital's department of surgery.