W is for Warrior
Dallas charity warriors let it ride at annual casino extravaganza
Nearly 200 people joined Gail Warrior at Altitude in W Dallas Victory Hotel for the third annual Deals and Dreams Casino Night in all of its Havana Nights glory. The fun and games benefited the Young Warriors Summer Learning Program of the Heart of a Warrior Charitable Foundation.
Chairs Valerie and Mike Karns teamed with Warrior to help raise more than $80,000, which funds an eight-week STEM-based academic enrichment program for children ages 5 to 15. “These funds directly translate into more children we can enrich and inspire through the Young Warriors Summer Learning Program,” Warrior said.
Emcee Ron Corning kept the energy level high and encouraged everyone to bet big and purchase raffle tickets, reminding them that it takes only $1,000 to cover a child’s cost at camp. While guests — including Susie Bell, Phil Claybrooke, Jesse Jackson, Melanie and Mark Crutcher, Criss Crossen, Holly Forsythe, Royce Richmond, and Joyce Goss — decided where to place their bets, they got a sense of Old Havana, thanks to Tropicana Club-style dancers and tasty tropical shrimp and chicken kebobs.
At the end of the night, guests cashed in their chips and totaled their earnings in hopes of winning one of two high-roller prizes: four suite tickets to this year’s Dallas Cowboys Thanksgiving Day game or an LG 60-inch Smart HDTV, complete with a Playstation 4 gaming console.
Warrior founded the Heart of a Warrior Charitable Foundation in 2007 to benefit underserved children in Dallas. Since its inception, HOAW’s Young Warrior Summer Learning Program has served nearly 1,300 students and has graduated nearly 725.