Newport Beach steps into relief effort

The outreach of help following the death and destruction inflicted on

the Gulf Coast by Hurricane Katrina has reached Newport Beach, where

a fundraiser is in the works.

Newport Beach Country Club, a private golf club, is opening its

doors on Sept. 26 for the public to play the renowned course in

return for a donation, club president Jerry Anderson said Friday.

The minimum donation has yet to be set, but it will likely be in

the $100 to $150 per person range, Anderson said. All the money

raised will be donated to the American Red Cross and delegated to the

relief effort in New Orleans, he added.

“We’re trying to do something to help the cause for all their

devastation down there,” Anderson said. “We’re going to donate the

golf course to anyone in the community who wants to play there.”

The golf course will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. that day and

the club will include a golf cart and green fee in return for the

donation, Anderson said.

“I hope that we get a couple hundred golfers to play that day,”

Anderson said. “We also want to offer a place where people can stop

by and write a check to the relief fund, even if they’re not going to

play.”

Anderson said he is looking for an entity that would match a

portion of the money raised. The McCormick Tribune Foundation, which

could match up to 50 cents for every dollar donated, said Anderson,

is a viable option.

Anderson said he thinks as much as $30,000 could be raised.

-- Chris Yemma