It's quite possible that 90 percent of the attendees at Friday night's ULTRAparty on Washington Road in Mt. Lebanon weren't even born when Journey released "Don't Stop Believing." But that didn't keep them from pumping fists in the air in beat with Velveeta as the group performed the rock anthem to a wound-up crowd of young adults.

	John Heller, Post-Gazette Part of the crowd at Friday night's first ULTRAparty on Washington Road, Mt. Lebanon. Velveeta, a State College band, kept the music coming for three hours. The event, organized by LEBO, a group of young professionals, raised money for the Autism Center of Pittsburgh. Click photo for larger image.

For three hours, Velveeta, the State College band, plunked on an Alfred Street stage, continued to churn out familiar cover songs, most of them from the 1980s, to an enthusiastic crowd carrying large plastic cups of beer. By the cheers from the crowd, a lot of them were Penn Staters too, though the band remembered where it was and gave a shout-out to Panthers fans as well.

Precise crowd counts were hard to come by, but the best guess is more than 2,000 people jammed onto several blocks on Washington Road for the town's first ULTRAparty, organized by LEBO, a young professionals group.

Final numbers aren't in, but it appears the event raised at least $15,000 for the Autism Center of Pittsburgh.

"I cannot believe how many people came," shouted an ecstatic Anne Fleming Babish, chairwoman of the organizing committee. "I don't have words. I don't."

She said the group's MySpace page has been flooded with donations for the center.

The party followed a sweaty and crammed First Friday, a family-oriented free outdoor festival that began at 6 p.m. But by 8 p.m., police cars had blocked off the street and tables were set up for patrons to get wristbands admitting them to ULTRAparty.

Party-goers, dressed for the heat of the 90-degree evening, were greeted by a 30-foot Miller Lite inflatable bottle. Dozens of orange T-shirt clad volunteers were selling auction tickets for 26 baskets of prizes.

But not all the family types headed home after First Friday. Well into the evening, parents with babies in back carriers and strollers still walked the scene, seeming to have a great time even as their children nodded off.

"It's pretty cool," said Charles Palin, 21, of Oakland, as he surveyed the party. "I wish they did something like this in Oakland."

Mr. Palin came with his friends, Katie Poploski, 21, and Caitlin Moore, 21, both of Upper St. Clair. Both were house-sitting a home in Mission Hills and heard about the party.

"We just walked here," Ms Poploski said. Both nodded that they were having a good time.

Megan Kranak, 30, of Burgettstown, was at the party with about 20 to 30 of her friends, many of whom were dancing in front of the stage area.

"I like '80s stuff," she said, yelling to be heard over the band.

Maddie Georgi, 14, a sophomore at Hampton High School, opened the show with a song she wrote six months ago about her brother, Jake, 12, who has autism. The crowd ate it up.

Police said the audience was mostly well-behaved, helped by a noticeable police presence and undercover operations by the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement.

	John Heller, Post-Gazette Six-year-old Samantha Biggs, who was here from Atlanta to visit family, races around the ULTRAparty. Click photo for larger image.

The group had a special events liquor license, so patrons could purchase beer and drink it as they walked through the party. Proceeds from the beer sale went to the Autism Center of Pittsburgh. Guests also could purchase beer and liquor from several open bars on the street.

Food vendors sold hot dogs, and water and food sponsor Luma South also provided eats.

Patrons continued to stream in and out of bars and restaurants on the street and ambled back out in front of the stage to take in more music.

"I'm overwhelmed," said Cindy Waeltermann, director of the Autism Center of Pittsburgh, as she listed things she overheard all night: "Mt. Lebanon needs to do this more often. This is better than Jam on Walnut."

But most importantly, she was pleased it raised much-needed money.

"We definitely made enough to open a center in the South Hills," she said.

Heather Fischer, an occupational therapist who works with kids from the Autism Center, said services are badly needed in the South Hills. With one in 150 children being diagnosed with an autistic disorder, the families need to be able to get therapy services close to home. While the center has locations in Robinson and McCandless, those drives can be a burden to busy families who need services the minute their child gets a diagnosis to ensure the most progress in the years to come, she said.

"These parents need everything they can get," she said.