What: The 22nd Annual Texas Trailblazer Luncheon benefiting The Family Place
Where: Hilton Anatole
The 411: Co-chairs Cindy Stager and Kristen Sanger welcomed guests into the Chantilly Ballroom, where The Family Place CEO Paige Flink presented 2017 awards. Most notably, the Texas Trailblazer Award went to Lynn McBee for her charitable work in the Dallas community. Also recognized were Be Project Award Recipients Elizabeth Grandell and Lamisa Mustafa, Faith-Based Vision and Leadership Award Recipient Highland Park United Methodist Church, and Advocacy Award recipient TexProtects.
Following the awards ceremony, the keynote speaker, TV commentator and best-selling author Gretchen Carlson, gave a powerful speech highlighting domestic violence and sexual assault in the workplace, while referencing her own experiences with sexual assault throughout her career.
The evening before the luncheon, a more intimate Patron Party for The Family Place's most charitable donors took place at the Highland Park home of Amy Turner. Guests mingled while sipping on wine and enjoying cuisine by the Coquerel Family Wine Estates and Proper Catering & Events. Domestic violence survivor and past client Aliyah Miranda shared her personal experience with suffering from domestic abuse and finding help through The Family Place.
The Family Place is one of the first family violence service providers in the state with a mission to eliminate family violence through intervention and proactive prevention, extensive community education, and advocacy and assistance for victims and their families. Since 1978, The Family Place has counseled more than 225,000 clients, provided lifesaving shelter to more than 22,000 women, children and men, and answered more than 550,000 calls for help.
Who: Ciara Cooley, Ruth Altshuler, Lisa Cooley, Brian Levine, Laurie Berger, Brenda Cockerell, Clay Cockerell, Ramona Jones, Billie Leigh Rippey, Bobbie Sue Williams, Rhonda Sargent Chambers, Nick Even, Stephanie Hollman, Travis Hollman, Connie O'Neill, Tracey Nash-Huntley, Donald Fowler, Terry Loftis, Kelly Perkins, Heather Randall, Lisa Singleton, Kathy Lethbridge, The Hon. Anita Martinez, and Al Martinez.
Ciara Cooley, Ruth Altshuler, Lisa Cooley
