Fall Date Book

9 fall charitable events every good Dallas socialite must attend

September's arrival means it's time to start thinking about society season. From now through the first week of December, altruistic Dallasites flex their philanthropic muscles to raise money for causes that are near and dear to their hearts. Won't you join them to support your charity of choice?

TACA 50th Anniversary Gala, September 8
Happening a couple weeks early, this art-focused fundraiser jumps into the spotlight as this fall's official philanthropic kickoff event. The Custom Auction Gala is celebrating five decades, so it's sure to be a glittering affair. The Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek will open for a night of fine wine, decadent dining, a lively auction, and a commissioned performance by the area's finest dance companies. Funds raised for TACA support various performing arts organizations in North Texas.

Crystal Charity Ten Best Dressed Fashion Show & Luncheon, September 15
This ultra-exclusive luncheon always sells out. On the guest list are the crème de la crème of Dallas society. Luncheon chair Christi Urschel will welcome guests to Neiman Marcus Downtown, where honorees — Anita Arnold, Delilah Boyd, Katherine Coker, Janie Condon, Lisa Cooley, Tucker Enthoven, Pat Harloe, Julie Hawes, Amy Hegi, and Piper Wyatt — will model the Zac Posen Resort 2017 Collection. Charlotte Jones Anderson is the 2017 Hall of Fame honoree.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra Gala, September 16
Legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma will join the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and music director Jaap van Zweden for this musical tradition, which kicks off the symphony season each year. Lisa and Clay Cooley will welcome guests to the Meyerson Symphony Center for a cocktail reception and seated dinner with wine pairings before the performance. A lively after-party will take place once the final notes are played.

Susan G. Komen 35th Anniversary Luncheon, September 27
Each fall, there's always a stellar luncheon speaker or two at Dallas events, and this year the buzz is about TV personality Giuliana Rancic giving the keynote address at the Susan G. Komen 35th Anniversary Luncheon at the Belo Mansion. Luncheon chair Gigi Hill Lancaster and honorary chairs Linda Custard, Ruth Altshuler, and Gene Jones are pulling out all the stops to honor those who have helped fund life-saving breast cancer research and programs through Komen.

The Dallas Opera First Sight, First Night, October 19, 20
The festivities, which celebrate 60 years of The Dallas Opera, will start with the First Sight luncheon, chaired by Lisa Cooley, Ciara Cooley, and Bela Pjetrovic; it will showcase the latest fashions of Italian designer Salvatore Ferragamo provided by NorthPark Center, along with lunch by Wolfgang Puck. First Night chairs Dianne and Mark LaRoe and honorary chairs Nancy Nasher and David J. Haemisegger then will welcome opera fans to the gala, with both a pre-performance dinner and an after-party. The featured production will be "Samson & Delilah." All events will take place at the Winspear Opera House.

Cattle Baron's Ball, October 21
Talk about serious pressure. Each year, Cattle Baron's event chairs are expected to bring in the best of the best in country music (past acts have included Tim McGraw and Toby Keith). This year's co-chairs, Sunie Solomon and Anne Stodghill, don't disappoint, as they've snagged legendary duo Brooks & Dunn. Add endless food, stiff drinks, and auctions galore, and you've got yourself one of the best cowboy-boot balls in the land. The event, themed "Shooting for the Stars: A Dream as Big as Texas," will take place at Gilley's Dallas.

Two x Two for Aids and Art Gala and Auction, October 28
This Rachofsky House event packs the party with contemporary art and benefits the Dallas Museum of Art and amfAR. The 2017 honored artist is Jonas Wood. Nasiba Hartland-Mackie and her husband, Thomas, are co-chairing the black-tie gala dinner, which will feature a live and silent auction of significant contemporary art, as well as live entertainment.

Black Tie Dinner, November 11
This downtown Dallas gala attracts a long list of celebrity guests who help raise funds for LGBTQ organizations in North Texas. This year's keynote speaker will be the 22nd secretary of the Army, Eric Fanning. The annual Kuchling Humanitarian Award will be presented to Rev. Eric Folkerth for his positive impact on Dallas’ LGBTQ community, and Terrance McNally will be this year’s Ally for Equality Award recipient.

Crystal Charity Ball, December 2
Atop the social hierarchy, the Crystal Charity Ball is the city's most drop-dead gorgeous gala. This year's theme, "Evening in the Alps," is sure to see the Hilton Anatole's Chantilly Ballroom drenched in snowflake crystals. The 2017 ball beneficiaries are Autism Treatment Center, Inc.; Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star; Children’s Medical Center Foundation; Dallas Holocaust Museum; Hunger Busters; Presbyterian Communities and Services Foundation; Rainbow Days; Santa Clara of Assisi Catholic Academy; The Crystal Charity Ball Educational Scholarship Project' and The Crystal Charity Ball Endowment Fund.

Nancy Nasher and David Haemisegger at Dallas Opera's First Night 2016

Photo by Sylvia Elzafon

Nancy Nasher and David Haemisegger at Dallas Opera's First Night 2016

galas fundraisers charity luncheons

A Glittering Celebration

Christine Baranski brings Hollywood sparkle to Dallas luncheon

Photo by Kim Leeson

Karen Hughes White, Caren Lock, Christine Baranski, Shonn Brown.

The Omni Dallas Hotel shimmered in ruby tones on November 14 as more than 950 supporters gathered to celebrate a milestone four decades in the making: the Texas Women’s Foundation’s Ruby Anniversary Luncheon.

The afternoon blended Hollywood sparkle — courtesy of award-winning actress Christine Baranski — with heartfelt tributes to the visionary women who sparked a movement in Texas 40 years ago.

The annual luncheon, one of the region’s most significant events advancing women and girls, raised an impressive $840,000. More than $112,000 of that came in during the program itself, underscoring the energy in the room and the urgency of the mission.

TXWF used the occasion to announce a landmark figure: a cumulative $115 million in impact since its founding in 1985. That number includes nearly $90 million in grants to organizations serving women and girls, as well as more than $25 million invested in research, advocacy, and leadership initiatives designed to shape long-term change.

Board chair Cris Zertuche Wong opened the program by welcoming seven of the Foundation’s 11 living founders, who also served as the event's honorary co-chairs: Susan Shamburger Bagwell, the Honorable Harryette Ehrhardt, Catalina E. Garcia, Frances Griffin-Brown, Helen LaKelly Hunt, the Honorable Kay Bailey Hutchison, Madeline Mandell, Patricia Meadows, Gwendolyn Oliver, CoYoTe PhoeNix, and Rebecca Russell Sykes.

Their presence cast a powerful through line from 1985 to 2025, reminding guests how a collective of 19 bold women stepped across differences in background, beliefs, and political leanings to create an organization with the singular purpose of supporting Texas women and their families.

Wong also recognized former Foundation leaders and Ruby Anniversary co-chairs from across the decades: Gail Griswold and Brenda Jackson representing the 1980s; Laura Estrada, the 1990s; Helen Frank, the 2000s; and Shonn Brown, the 2020s.

TXWF president and CEO Karen Hughes White spoke to the road ahead, noting that while the founders’ vision remains timeless, the challenges facing Texas women have grown more complex. “It will take all of us to create meaningful, lasting, systemic change that levels the playing field for women and, in turn, creates a strong and vibrant Texas for all,” she said.

Throughout the luncheon, guests were treated to archival video clips of the founders recalling how they built TXWF from scratch: the meetings held around kitchen tables, the spirited debates, the shared belief that change was not only possible but necessary.

Brown then honored each of the 11 living founders, as well as those who have passed, noting that their collective voice will be further amplified in a forthcoming 40-story collection documenting TXWF's history.

The afternoon’s featured guest, introduced by Target executive and event sponsor Sabrina Thomas, was the incomparable Christine Baranski, the Emmy and Tony-winning actress of The Good Wife, Cybil, and The Gilded Age.

In an onstage conversation moderated by former board chair Caren Lock, Baranski charmed the audience with stories from her upbringing in Buffalo, New York, where she grew up in a working-class Polish American family. She spoke of perseverance, discipline, and dreaming big, qualities that carried her to Juilliard and ultimately into a celebrated four-decade career spanning television, film, and theater.

As the luncheon drew to a close, the mood was equal parts celebratory and forward-looking. Forty years in, the Texas Women’s Foundation continues to push for equity with the same passion that fueled its founding.

Photo by Kim Leeson

Karen Hughes White, Caren Lock, Christine Baranski, Shonn Brown.

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