We learn "pi r square" in high school but at the Salmon Bay Eagles Lodge in Ballard Jan. 23 the pie, and the crowd, were very hip when Mary Schile hosted her 6th Annual Pie Party.

The last five were held at her Ballard home, but the guest list began rising like doe in an oven. This was her first charity event, to raise money and awareness for the Marsha Rifkin Center for Ovarian Cancer Research in Seattle.

Schile was cherried out in her custom wardrobe, with a cherry-print dress, sporting a necklace with dangling cherry baubles, a cherry clip-on hat, and shoes affixed with ornamental pies. She was wrapped in a loud red feather boa for added effect.

"Today is National Pie Day and I am a member of the American Pie Council," she declared with pied, er, pride.

"There are pie parties tonight all over America for pie fanatics and sweet bandits," she said.

Pie-party-goers donated pies, pie-related raffle items including kitchen wear, and money for charity.

Schile said friends have been affected with cancer, and that when she thinks of charity, "I always think of Marsha Rifkin," she said.

"What's great about this party is that it is not just limited to fruit pies," said Scottie Sindora of Ballard, who was attacking a slice of shepherd's pie, while wife, Julie held their 9 month-old-son, Obi, who wore a pie hat and pie-themed apron she designed.

"One year I brought a "nacho pie" to the party," Julie said. "The crust was a pile of chips," she added, as musicians were on stage warming up to the tune of, what else? "American Pie."

Steve Shay can be reached at 932-0300 or steves@robinsonnews.com.