Among the countless things taking place on April 16, Annette Leslie was having her Shady Ladies at Lisa Troutt’s benefiting The Carson Leslie Foundation; Lydia Novakov was over at the Genesis Luncheon Patron Party; and Legacy of Love was partying at Park Place in Plano for Children’s Medical Center. Are you getting the impression that Wednesday is the new Thursday? Well, at least on this day, it was.
Appetite For Advocacy Patron Party
Appetite for Advocacy Luncheon patrons gathered at the Plains Capital headquarters waiting for Diana Nyad, keynote speaker for the next day’s mega-luncheon fundraising for the Dallas Children’s Advocacy Center.
So typical of a Dallas fundraiser! As they waited, the Luncheon Co-Chairs Lindsay Jacaman and Holly Krug, DCAC Chief Development Officer Chris Culak and guests ran into old friends and made new ones. PC’s Isabell Novakov reported that the Hockaday centennial celebration was indeed a hit. She pointed out that former Hockadaisy, the late Margaret Crow, whose memorial service had been held earlier that day, was born when “Miss Hockaday”’s school was just six years old. Sidenote: The Hockaday Upper School Concert Choir sang superbly at the service held in Highland Park United Methodist Church.
On the other aide of the lobby, KRLD biz guy David Johnson got a tour of the PC offices by Brian Heflin. David, who had emceed the Junior Achievement fundraiser Saturday, was raving about Randall Stephenson, John Tolleson and Ralph Babb. Even Herb Kelleher had attended the event.
At 6:30 word was passed that Diana was just moments away, and guests were herded into the large conference room overlooking Victory. Out of nowhere, the blonde keynote speaker appeared in the lobby.
With a dazzling smiles, the swimming legend in sky-blue pantsuit proved to be an all-around pal. There were no strangers. She, the newcomer, made one and all feel like they had been best friends for ages.
After having a few quick photos taken with DCAC President/CEO Lynn Davis and Ronnie Berg, she was hustled into the conference room, where she gave a very abbreviated version of her Thursday’s talk. Despite its brevity, it hit home with this group that daily champions the rights of children in neglectful situations.
Dallas Uncorked 10th Anniversary Party
On the other side of downtown Dallas, wine woman Hayley Hamilton Cogill was hosting the 10th anniversary of “Dallas Uncorked” to raise funds and awareness of The Birthday Party Project and Charity:Water.org at SALT Dallas (formerly Ku De Ta). Boy, if you haven’t been there, it’s no surprise. It’s smack dab down an open walkway between a couple of hospitality venues. But once you enter the outdoor patio with its multi-tiered terraces and pool with spouting fountains, you know this is the place to party.
With more than 125 guests like The Birthday Party Project’s Paige Chenault, Tiffany Divis, Gina Willemin, Jennifer Houser and Debra Nelson sipping wine from Aveniu Brands and bites prepared by Chef Andrew Ormsby, Hayley reported that she launched Dallas Uncorked “to be a unique way for people to come try something they wouldn’t normally do.” Evidently quite a few have given it a try, since its membership has grown to 2,500.
Don Winspear told about a benefit that he and wife Ellen are putting together for this July at Kessler Theater to support research for transverse myelitis, the condition that entered the Winspear world less than two years ago. In addition to raising funds, the Winspears hope to broaden awareness of this debilitating disease.
Melina McKinnon, who had lost all that extra weight from being a new mom, reported that the secret to the dramatic loss was eliminating sugar. Translation: No sugar on the lips means less weight on the hips. Of course, it also helps to run after a one-year-old. Husband Michael Cain, who was just recently named head of the Dallas Earth Day production, was on his way to Uncorked.
The Wings crowd (Ashlee and Chris Kleinert with daughter Connie Kleinert) was glowing from the success of the previous week’s luncheon for New Friends New Life. That group included Hayley’s husband, Gary Cogill, who interviewed Sally Field at the luncheon.
Gary was also admitting that last week was especially big for him. In addition to the Field interview, he had three films (Starck Club, Words and Pictures and Believe Me) in the Dallas International Film Festival. “I’ll never have three pictures in a festival again in my life,” he said.