From left, Brian O’Neill, Erin van Reen, Beth Devine and Dan MacDonald.

The crowd “oohed” and “ahhed” at the Fourth-of-July-like fireworks that lit up the sky over the Carnegie Abbey Club in Portsmouth on Aug. 9.

Sousa music played in the background, and the nearly 400 guests enjoyed the pièce de résistance of the annual beach party best known for a colorful display. Earlier in the evening, a live auction featured such top sellers as $17,000 for a four-day stay for eight at the Abaco Club on Winding Bay in the the Bahamas; $8,500 bought two tickets to ESPN’s ESPY awards in Los Angeles; and $5,700 paid for tickets to the Sony Open in Hawaii.

“This party is to have fun, and to give to charity,” said Brian O’Neill, the owner of the Carnegie Abbey Club and the evening’s auctioneer. “It’s important to remember that we are part of the larger community and we want to give back to it.”

The proceeds, which had not yet been calculated, will go toward enhancing educational programs at Save The Bay.