2022 St. Valentine’s Day Luncheon And Fashion Show Chair Lisa Loy Laughlin announced that one of North Texas’ own fashionable daughters will receive the fundraiser’s Icon Award.
Fashion designer Lela Rose will be presented with the award on Monday, February 7, at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of North Texas’ fundraising fashion show and seated luncheon.
Bestowed to “a beloved individual from the Dallas-Fort Worth community who is considered an icon through philanthropic efforts, in addition to their contributions to fashion,” the award has recognized Jan Strimple and Patsy Donosky in recent years.
According to Lisa, “Lela Rose, one of Dallas’ true treasures, has been a featured designer in the St. Valentine’s Day fashion show for many years in support of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. We are so thrilled to honor her philanthropic commitment to our community and her hometown. As fellow icon Jan Strimple said so perfectly, ‘Lela is a beloved daughter of our great city’ and we could not agree more!”
Having been born and raised in Dallas, Lela’s training as a painter and sculptor led to her fashion design “employing a brilliant use of color, rich fabrications, sculptural silhouettes and handcrafted details.” For more than 20 years, she “has proactively supported a proven network of artisans, sewers, pattern-makers, manufacturers and small business owners in New York City,” where she is based.
This salute isn’t Lisa’s first opportunity to spotlight Lela’s talents and philanthropy. It was back in 2018, when Lisa was president of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra League, that Lela was honored at the organization’s Fashion Notes Luncheon and Style Show with the Inaugural Fashion Notes Designer Award.
Taking place at the Meyerson, the fashion show and luncheon will be produced by Jan Strimple with spring fashions provided by Lela Rose and other Highland Park Village merchants (Alice and Olivia, Carolina Herrera, Etro, Hadleigh’s, Market, St. Michael’s Woman’s Exchange and Veronica Beard).
Sponsorships and tickets are now available for the occasion and to fund blood cancer research.
* Photo provided by Leukemia And Lymphoma Society of North Texas