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August 26,
2004
Dear
Benefactors of Association Compassion,
It is my pleasure to report that the 2nd AC Dinner
& Tennis event that took place August 14-15, 2004 has exceeded
our expectations. We have received a remarkably warm support
from friends, sponsors and family members. As of this writing,
148 sponsors have signed up and donated to the fundraising
drive. In North America alone, we raised a gross amount of
$8,290 in prizes, non-cash benefits and cash donations. A net
cash amount of $6,032 is realized after expenses for the
dinner/dance, cà phê/bánh ḿ thịt, court fees, balls,
trophies, etc.
The dinner was sponsored in part by
Russell Seafood Palace in Irvine, CA. The restaurant was in
the midst of a renovation but still opened its doors several
weeks early to host the dinner for 110 people. We were served
an excellent 5-course dinner: Tofu soup with minced meat,
House special chicken, House special crispy pork, Chinese
green sautéed with garlic, and Fried fish with mint leaves.
The portions were very generous. Some tables received double
portions, courtesy of the owner/chef. The restaurant was not
fully staffed, so several guests and their children
volunteered to set up the tables, serve the food, and put away
the tables/chairs to make room for the dance. Notwithstanding
the inconvenient arrangement, I hope this experience was a
unique and unforgettable one for everyone. We were fortunate
to have DNDN Tennis sponsor a 3-man musical band for our
second annual. The music was fantastic thanks to guests
lending their singing talents. We had the whole restaurant to
ourselves and many danced until the 11:00 pm closing time.
For the
tournament, we provided breakfast (bánh ḿ thịt & café sữa) to
50 players. Big thanks to Liêm T. Nguyễn and his wife Thanh,
Vy Lê, Vinh Trần and Cao Ngô for setting up the bánh ḿ/cà phê,
drawing board, coolers, bottled water, pre-cut name slips and
tennis balls. Special thanks also to chi Hương Lai, Nguyệt Cao
and Vy Lê for registering the players in their respective
rankings, matching them together in teams and keeping scores.
Random pairings of players were organized to make each match
more exciting and less predictable. Each team of players
competed in 2 matches of 12 games each. The winners received a
bonus of 3 points in addition to the points earned per game.
Tied players received 1 bonus point. We produced two levels of
competition (A and B) and doubled the number of winners and
prizes.
Ladies reigned
supreme at the tournament this year. Michelle Hằng and Teresa
Lan took top prizes in both categories. The most exciting
match of the day was in Level A where Mr. Cửu and Mr. Hoàn
dueled in a 1-set playoff game for 2nd place. Our
youngest winner was 10-yr old Calvin. The winners also
received trophies. Congratulations to the winners and all the
players for their competitive spirits!
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