At noon on Friday, February 21, North Texans had two totally different fundraisers. At St. Philip’s School and Community Center’s Snyder Activity Center, the 20th Annual Destiny Award Luncheon was underway with Taraji P. Henson as guest speaker and Peter Brodsky receiving the 2020 Mona and David Munson Humanitarian Award.
Over at the Dallas Trade Mart, Attitudes and Attire was having its annual luncheon with a fashion show modeled by volunteers and members of Attitudes and Attire’s Boots and Heels program.
While the fashion show fundraiser didn’t start until 11:30, the nearly 600 guests were arriving before 11. It was a mix of all ages. Some had gray hair; some had extensions. Some wore stilettos; some leaned on walkers.
Following the playing of the national anthem by Madelyn Farquhar and the blessing by Bob Storer, emcee/Clear Channel’s Anna de Haro asked for any who had served in the armed forces to stand.
One of those who stood was Mike Rials. Since leaving the military, he had had his challenges adjusting to civilian life. It was a remarkable story resulting in his joining the Brain Performance Institute, getting married to Bethany Voss on November 17, 2018, and just recently becoming a father of Jenna. On this day he was part of the Center for BrainHealth table, as well as being a board member of Attitudes and Attire.
The fashion show featuring clothes from the Attitudes and Attire Boutique and Eileen Fisher clothes got underway with Boots and Heels members waving American flags to the delight of the crowd. Ironically, the flag onstage stayed unfurled.
Following Attitudes and Attire Founder Lyn Berman’s introducing Honorary Chair/Mercury One’s Suzanne Bock Grishman and presenting the Kim Dawson Attitude Award to Kim Hanrahan and Kayla Hanrahan, Attitudes and Attire clients shared their stories on how Attitudes and Attire had been so instrumental in their recovery from drug and sexual abuse and suicide attempts. Today they were proud of what they had achieved as contributing members of the community and for their stable family lives.
One of the programs provided by Attitudes and Attire is Hopeful Smiles. It seems that years ago Lyn realized that clothes and counseling just weren’t enough for clients in getting jobs and gaining self-confidence. Too often, after years of living through difficult times and poor dental healthcare, clients had lost teeth. Thanks to the support of Dallas-area dental professionals donating their time, 600 women have received treatments resulting in smiles.
Just as the last round was made for raffle-ticket purchases, it was announced that the “Human Investment Foundation had pledged a total of $250,000 to be distributed annually in increments of $10,000 for the Harold B. Berman Scholarship Fund. Harold was Lyn’s late husband who passed away in March 2019. He was an avid supporter of the agency. Additionally, the Human Investment Foundation pledged an additional $50,000 to be used towards the Harold B. Berman Scholarship Fund as needed. Funding will be used to assist our clients with their higher education expenses.”