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MySweetCharity Photo Gallery Alert!: 2018 Equest Women’s Auxiliary Luncheon And Style Show
Before the models walked the runway at Brook Hollow for the annual Equest Women’s Auxiliary Luncheon and Style Show on Tuesday, October 2, Alex Salser brought home the reason why Equest’s therapeutic programs are life-changing experiences.
And while the adult models did a flawless job in Highland Park Village fashions, the munchkin models absolutely stole the show.
The post is already up, but the fashions and faces were just too cute to pass up, so check ’em out at MySweetCharity Photo Gallery.
Beware The Ice Of November
It’s going to be dipping down to below freezing the next couple of nights. This year’s chilly weather may seem to be a bit premature. The good news is that it’s going to hopefully reduce the bug population.
On the other hand, it’s going to need to jump-start your winterize thinking. While there is no need to remind anyone about the three P’s (pets, pipes, plants), there are some non-P’s to consider.
- Turn off your sprinkler system. It’s a waste of water and results in icy walkways and streets.
- Check on your neighbors. Whether they’re elderly, disabled or perhaps a first-time homeowner, touch base with them.
- Have your heating system and chimney checked out.
- Clean out your closets of clothes, blankets and stuff you seriously don’t need anymore. Admit it. You haven’t worn/used ’em in ages, and Goodwill, The Salvation Army, Dallas Animal Services and other organizations can put them to good use.
- Take a slow start driving tomorrow morning. With the wet stuff chilling over night on the roads, it could be a slip-and-slide experience.
Now, go get some marshmallows, so you can have them in your cocoa while you bake a loaf of homemade bread.
Country Star Clay Walker Wows The Crowd At First-Ever Blue Jean Ball For Luke’s FastBreaks
The moment you entered Eddie Deen’s Ranch at Downtown Dallas on Saturday, September 29, you just knew the inaugural Blue Jean Ball benefiting Luke’s FastBreaks was going to be a big success. Hundreds of guests, many of them in their 20s, were milling about enjoying the reception, which soon would be followed by Deen’s Texas barbecue, a live auction, and then a raucous, boot-scootin’ performance by country star Clay Walker.
Chaired by Mary Martha and Dr. John Pickens and Tia and Bedford Shelmire Wynne Jr., the first-ever bash lured a crowd of noteworthy and charitable guests. Among them: Gina and Ken Betts, Christie Carter, Sue and Jimmy Gragg, Patti Flowers and Tom Swiley, Joanna Clark, Michael Faircloth, Lynn and Allan McBee, Wendy and Boyd Messmann, Kendra Treece, Jake Pavelka, Katy and Lawrence Bock, Nancy Gopez, Angie and Dr. Kevin Kadesky, Tiffany and Paul Divis with his son Chris Divis with Alyssa Durbin, Dianne and Mark LaRoe and Underwriting Co-Chairs Lisa and Clay Cooley with their brood Bela and Chase Cooley and Ciara Cooley with Jake Fraze.
Fashion note: Both Luke’s FastBreaks Founder Luke Lange and his dad, Ben Lange, were wearing matching black shirts created for the night by Dallas designer Michael Faircloth.
As the evening proceeded, we learned that Luke was diagnosed at age 9 with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Before winning his battle with the dreaded disease several years ago, Luke turned his distaste for hospital gowns — who doesn’t hate those things? — into alternative patient garb: soft-cotton T-shirts Luke designed with “fast-snap” buttons on each side. The lad’s unique design allows medical staffers to access the patient without ever having to remove or “pull up” the shirt.
Soon enough, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban jumped in to support Luke’s clever alternative to the traditional hospital gown. Today, Luke’s brainchild is helping the nonprofit Luke’s FastBreaks — established three years ago — support patients with free medical shirts in 42 cities, 26 states, and more than 70 hospitals. Ronald McDonald House Charities also benefits from the nonprofit, whose shirt sales provides critical dollars for pediatric cancer.
Luke and his sister, Livia Lange, got the “program” part of the evening going by explaining the nonprofit’s mission (“I’ve learned on my journey that we all have to help each other,” Luke said). Then the pair’s mother and father, Tracy and Ben Lange, took the stage to help goose up the live auction. Tens of thousands of dollars proceeded to roll in, as such items as a trip for four to Sea Island, Georgia, and a VIP Night for two with the Dallas Mavericks drew enthusiastic bids.
One clear crowd favorite, though, was the VIP Trip For Two To Dancing With The Stars. Highlight of the visit to the ABC-TV show backstage would be the presence of former The Bachelor and Dancing With The Stars cast member Jake Pavelka, who took the mic to hype the one-of-a-kind package. (The winning bid was $25,000.) Afterward Jake, who’s now a VP with real estate firm ESRP in Frisco, said he was looking forward next to hearing Clay perform: “The last time I saw him was in 1995. I love Clay Walker.”
He wasn’t the only one. From the moment Walker hit the spotlight, with a big backdrop that said “Long Live The Cowboy,” the Beaumont native had the Blue Jean guests on their feet dancing. And who could resist, with Clay running through his No. 1 hits like “If I Could Make A Living (Out of Loving You),” “Dreaming With My Eyes Open,” “Live Until I Die,” and “This Woman and This Man.” Walker and his six musicians also showed off their party-band chops, performing such crowd-pleasing “cover” tunes as “Night Moves,” “Honky Tonk Women,” and “Sweet Home Alabama.”
While this may have been the first Blue Jean Ball, by the end of the night it was a pretty good bet it wouldn’t be the last.
For more photos of the night, check MySweetCharity Photo Gallery.
Interfaith Family Services’ 4th Annual Auxiliary Luncheon Will Be Strictly A Family Affair Across The Boards
Plans for 2019 fundraising are already in high gear. The latest to be announced is Interfaith Family Services’ 4th Annual Auxiliary Luncheon — “Families Helping Families: Doubling Our Impact” — slated for Friday, March 1, at Belo Mansion. The timing is perfect to coincide with the spring opening of Interfaith’s “new $11 million Family Empowerment Center which will double its annual impact.”
In keeping with the family theme, Interfaith Auxiliary President Amy Hegi arranged to have a trio of young moms — Wynne Brown, Meredith Ferrell and Katie Head — to serve as luncheon co-chairs and Katy and Kyle Miller as honorary co-chairs.
Adding to the familial feel will be “The Blind Side’s” Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy at the podium as the keynoters.
Over the years the Auxiliary has provided $2.4M to support the 32-year-old nonprofits that has “been a leading resource for working poor families and a haven for homeless children, who long for stability and hope.”
Underwriting opportunities are available here with luncheon proceeds benefiting Interfaith’s Family Empowerment Program.
* Photo provided by Interfaith Family Services
JUST IN: Greater Dallas Veterans Day Parade Is Canceled But The Appreciation Continues
The Greater Dallas Veterans Day Parade scheduled to take place Monday at 11 a.m. has been canceled. The decision was made due to concerns about the forecast of rain and temperatures in the 30s and 40s and the safety of spectators and participants.
While the call to cancel the parade was a wise move, it must be remembered that those who served in the U.S. military faced far worse conditions at times and deserve understanding, gratitude and support every day.
An example of this need is the Vietnam War vets. Linda and Dr. Les Secrest and their daughters have just returned to Dallas from the American Psychiatric Association’s Thursday wreath-laying ceremony at the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C.
As Dr. James Batterson pointed out, “The mental health professionals faced a set of military, moral and mental health challenges that up to this point were unprecedented making the job of treating soldiers in combat all the more difficult. The nature of the combat was unlike any that the U.S. military had encountered in prior conflicts and had different effects on our soldiers.”
Unlike their counterparts, these mental health experts dealt not with broken bones, bleeding out or lost limbs. Their challenge was much more stealth. It was helping people whose lives had not prepared them for a theater of war. And, no, it was not new. Soldiers over the centuries had returned from the battlefield mentally damaged. There are those who claim that Harper Lee‘s Boo Radley was an example of a World War I shell-shocked vet was not quite right upon returning home.
But thanks to the developments and advocacy of psychiatry, minds damaged from battlefield sights, sounds and atrocities were being acknowledged and addressed. Vietnam was a major, but still not enough of a, step up in the dealing with soldiers’ mental health.
Linda recalled, “Veterans returning from Vietnam were not welcomed or thanked for their service like every other war in history. When they returned from service, most were treated with disdain.”
Luckily, that attitude has changed over the decades, but not enough. So if you know a vet, especially a Vietnam vet, thank them for their service. If you don’t, find one to know and show your appreciation. And if your “friends dance card” is all filled out, donate to a reputable veterans’ support organization.
Monday’s Veterans Day Parade Celebrates The Centennial Of The Holiday’s Roots
This year’s Veterans Day has century-old roots. It was 100 years ago that World War I between the Allied nations and Germany officially ended with the signing of the Armistice Treaty at 11 a.m. on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. For some it was called Armistice Day; for others, it was … Read More...
MySweetCharity Photo Gallery Alert!: Blue Jean Ball
Needless to say, there were no flowing couture gowns nor cummerbunds at the inaugural Blue Jean Ball on Saturday, September 29, at Eddie Deen’s. Instead the gathering was strictly boots, blue jeans and boosters for Luke’s Fastbreaks T-shirts program.The crowd ranged from FastBreaks … Read More...
Equest Women’s Auxiliary Style Show And Luncheon Had Tears And Cheers Plus Some Munchkin Scene-Stealing
To all the world Alex Salser was an adorable teenager with long brown curls and a homecoming queen smile. But since her birth, Alex’s body had been posing all types of challenges due to Long-chain L-3 hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (LCHAD), which meant that her body would not accept fat. … Read More...
Equest Gala Co-Chairs Annie And Teal Griffeth’s Love Story Is The Stuff That Arabian Nights Are Made Of
Sometimes a friend’s setting you up on a date works… sometimes it doesn’t. In the case of Annie and Teal Griffeth, it worked bigtime and Equest is one of the beneficiaries.Backstory: Before Teal shipped out to Afghanistan, a friend introduced him to an artist friend — Annie — who had attended … Read More...
JUST IN: Tucker Enthoven To Chair 2020 Crystal Charity Ball
With the 2018 Crystal Charity Ball just three weeks away, plans are already underway for 2020. 2019 CCB Chair Pat McEvoy revealed that Tucker Enthoven “has agreed to serve as the 2019 Ball Chairman-Elect and the 2020 Ball Chairman.”According to Pat, “Tucker’s extensive experience in the … Read More...
Pumpkins And Pecans Provide The Power Of Pie Just In Time For Thanksgiving Feasting
Pumpkins have a two-fold purpose this time of year. Last month they brought out the creativity resulting in terrific jack-o’-lanterns. Now, they’re being recycled into pumpkin pies just in time for Thanksgiving that’s just days away.And some of the best pies are going to be part of the VNA’s … Read More...