On Wednesday, October 30, Los Angeles’ top philanthropists, ocean advocates and concerned celebrities converged at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel for Oceana’s Partners Award Gala, an evening of entertainment, fine dining and inspiration courtesy of Special Guests Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and HBO CEO Richard Plepler.

I was lucky to be invited to support Macie, Rachel, and Sarah – three third grade girls in my classroom who donated a $1000 giant check on stage to Hilary Clinton. Their concerted efforts lead them to care enough about protecting the world’s oceans and its creatures to raise money over the last year and a half. The evening’s event alone raised $1,000,000.

Oceana is a fairly new organization that was founded in 2001. It is the largest international advocacy group working solely to protect the world’s oceans. Oceana wins policy victories for the oceans using science-based campaigns. Since 2001, they have protected over 1.2 million square miles of ocean and innumerable sea turtles, sharks, dolphins and other sea creatures. More than 600,000 supporters have already joined Oceana. Global in scope, Oceana has offices in North, South and Central America and Europe.

“More and more people appreciate what the oceans mean to them” said Clinton. “As Secretary of State, I had the great privilege of working on behalf of all of you to try and bring international agreements to the forefront, and Oceana helps to focus the mind on what needs to be done. We know what can work, and Oceana works to achieve measurable outcomes that will help return our oceans to health.”

“HBO has a long history of using our voice to illuminate issues and challenges that face our planet. So it’s our honor to support the remarkable work of Oceana” remarked HBO’s CEO Richard Plepler.

Keith Addis, Oceana’s President of the Board and event chairman said, “All the support received tonight will directly benefit Oceana and help to make sure that the world’s oceans are filled with life and can provide food to billions of people and employment to hundreds of millions of workers around the world.”

Celebrity attendees included Oceana board member Ted Danson and wife Mary Steenburgen, Diane Lane, Jane Fonda, Kate Walsh, Kristin Davis, Sam Trammell, Maria Menounos, Cobie Smulders, Constance Zimmer, Sam Waterston, Melanie Griffith, Seth MacFarlane, Laura Dern, Harvey Weinstein, Ed Begley Jr, Dean Norris, Angela Kinsey, Austin Nichols, Dennis Haysbert, Emily Osment and more. I ran into former ETV Correspondant Ashlan Gorse with her new husband Philippe Cousteau.

“I’ve been doing this for 25 years, and I’ve never been more excited than I am right now” commented actor and Oceana Board of Directors member, Ted Danson. “The prospects of having a vibrant ocean with sustainable fisheries are near.”

In addition to inspiring remarks by Hillary Rodham Clinton, guests were treated to a live musical performance from award winning recording artists Carly Simon and Natasha Bedingfield, along with Ben Taylor, the son of Carly Simon and James Taylor, and the Hamilton High School Choir. Jane’s Addiction Chris Chaney played guitar. “You’re so Vain” and “I Haven’t Got Time For The Pain” made me think of Carly Simon’s big smile and blowing hair on a stage in the Vineyard in the 80’s and her music reverberated in my mind all week.

The Partners Award Gala would not have been possible without the generous help from the event chairs and hosts, including Keri Selig & Keith Addis, Heather Thomas & Skip Brittenham, Mary Steenburgen & Ted Danson , Calista Flockhart Ford & Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Brian Grazer, Dee & Tommy Hilfiger, Cheryl & Ron Howard, Lyn & Norman Lear, Sonny Ward & Michael Lombardo, Kelly & Ron Meyer, Trudie Styler & Sting, Sandy & Kevin Tsujihara, Joyce & John Varvatos, Lynn & Sam Waterston, and Noelle & Dick Wolf.

Guests left with the book called The Perfect Protein: How To Save the Oceans and Feed the World by Oceana CEO Andy Sharpless. It is a hopeful book that puts Oceana at the forefront of the issue of oceans and food security.  President Bill Clinton pens the foreward and 21 top chefs provide seafood recipes featuring some of the fish mentioned in the book. According to a recent study in Science, if the world’s fisheries were better managed, they could yield up to 40% more of the world’s healthiest, most environmentally friendly protein: wild seafood.

To learn more, click Oceana.