Power Philanthropy
Salvation Army does the most good for Dallas at $2.8 million power lunch
When Stan Richards, founder and CEO of the Richards Group, chairs a daytime event, you know it’s going to be big. And he delivered: More than 1,000 guests poured into the Hilton Anatole for the Salvation Army’s annual Doing the Most Good Luncheon.
Calling it a power lunch is putting it lightly, as the event raised an incredible $2.8 million to continue the organization’s programs and services to meet human needs in the community. And it would be doing her a disservice not to mention the wonder woman behind the fundraising efforts. So kudos to Debbie Oates, who served as the Salvation Army’s major gifts chair for 2014.
The luncheon began with advisory board chairman Rick Martin thanking Oates and Charlotte Jones Anderson for their support. He also expressed gratitude to the Jones family as a whole, for their extraordinary contributions to the Salvation Army for nearly 20 years. Anderson served this year as DFW Metroplex chair of the Salvation Army’s 125th anniversary celebration in Texas. Her parents, Gene and Jerry Jones, are also heavily involved in the organization.
Then it was time to dig in, as guests — includingConnie and Denny Carreker, Carol Seay, Ruth Altshuler, Margot Perot, Clint Degner, Paul Booth, and Sophie and Wills Johnson — lunched on pot pie, roast beef and chocolate dessert as they enjoyed songs, testimonials and videos about the lives that are transformed by the Salvation Army’s programs.
This year the annual Doing the Most Good Luncheon celebrated its 125th anniversary.