Social Circuit

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia trustee Salem Shuchman and his wife, Dr. Barbara Klock, hosted a reception Oct. 12 for leading benefactors of the hospital at their historic home, the Jayne House, designed in 1895 by Frank Furness. After recently undergoing an extensive two-year interior and exterior restoration, the Delancey Place house has been returned to its original use as a family residence. The reception honored more than 140 members of the hospital's Children's Circle of Care society, who last year contributed more than $16 million to the hospital.

More than 140 guests braved the torrential rain of Sept. 30 to attend the Bartram's Garden benefit "Twilight in the Garden," held under a tent at the historic garden. Cochaired by Jeff and Julie DeVuono and Chris and Elfie Haab, the event honored Mayor Nutter for his urban greening initiative, Greenworks Philadelphia. The benefit raised $62,000 for the 45-acre public garden, established on the banks of the Schuylkill by John Bartram in 1728. Proceeds will support the garden's free and low-cost community and education programs.

George Gephart Jr., the newly appointed president and chief executive officer of the Academy of Natural Sciences, and his wife, Pooh Gephart, were among the 200 guests who attended the Oct. 8 Shell Show Preview Party at the academy. The event was a preview of the two-day Philadelphia Shell Show, the largest shell show in the country outside Florida. The most expensive shell for sale was a $7,800 Bouchet's slit shell, which is found in the deep waters off New Caledonia in the South Pacific. The benefit raised $62,000 for the museum's department of malacology and the Center for Molluscan Studies.

More than $500,000 was raised at the ninth annual Pink Tie Ball, held Saturday at the Ritz-Carlton to benefit the Philadelphia Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The evening honored Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals; Dr. Richard G. Pestell, director of Jefferson's Kimmel Cancer Center; and Acme Markets. The evening featured a live auction, which included a donated $48,625 2011 Lexus IS250 convertible that went for $38,500 and a performance by singer Candy Coburn. The black-tie gala for 400 guests was chaired by Scott Clemens and his wife, Sloane Six, a breast cancer survivor.

Dodo Hamilton hosted a cocktail party Oct. 7 at her home in Wayne to launch the start of a fund-raising drive for the new Hamilton Family Children's Zoo and Education Center at the Philadelphia Zoo. Hamilton's son, Matt, and Gretchen Burke are cochairs of the campaign committee. The center, formerly the Pachyderm House, designed by Paul Cret in 1941, will house and breed rare sheep, goats, and chickens and other domestic animals that are endangered. SMP Architects is redesigning the space, which is expected to open in 2012.