BubblyQ Is Back

Charitable young professionals get ready for Dallas’ bubbliest party of the year

Plenty of people boast throwing the “party of the year,” but Young Texans Against Cancer can really stake the claim. BubblyQ, the group’s chef-driven party hosted at Fearing’s, returns for the ninth year on Thursday, October 13, led by celebrity chef chair Dean Fearing, YTAC event chair James Carroll, and honorary chair Katherine Harper.

Delicious eats and tantalizing libations are on tap for the fête. Guests sample dishes from some of Dallas’ best kitchens — Fearing’s, Uchi, Nobu, 18th & Vine, Parigi, Pappas Bros., Central Market, Hibiscus, The Joule, Lockhart Smokehouse — and craft cocktails from famed Dallas barman Eddie “Lucky” Campbell. Other highlights include sweet treats from Hospitality Sweet and Frost 321, a bubbles bar, Social Light photo booth, a Benefit Cosmetics beauty touch-up bar, and dance-worthy tunes courtesy of DJ Jennifer Miller.

Tickets go on sale September 15. They are $110 for YTAC members and $135 for non-members.

With its incredible eats and fantastic turnout year over year, BubblyQ is no ordinary party. In fact, it’s one of Dallas’ premier fundraisers. Last year, YTAC and Fearing’s raised more than $200,000 for local cancer initiatives, and they’re looking to surpass that sum via a signature silent auction. This year, the silent auction starts online, and bidders can participate before the event, even if they’re unable to make it to BubblyQ itself.

“The fight against cancer is a personal cause for me,” Fearing says. “I am proud to have served as the chef chair for BubblyQ for the past eight years. I know that the money YTAC raises goes to help get us one step closer to a cure.”

This year’s funds benefit each of YTAC’s beneficiaries:

1 Million 4 Anna, which offers kids support through three Dallas-area Anna’s Closets. YTAC supports these closets by helping to add to their supply of gift and toy items for children battling cancer.
First Descents, a program that provides young adult cancer fighters and survivors free outdoor adventure experiences. Focused on empowering these young fighters, First Descents offers climbing, paddling, surfing, and other activities to help them reclaim their lives.
Hope Lodge Dallas, a home away from home for cancer patients and caregivers. YTAC is focused on raising funds to help the American Cancer Society and Baylor Healthcare System construct Hope Lodge Dallas for patients who live more than 40 miles outside of the city, but must commute in for outpatient treatment.
Leukemia Texas, whose patient aid program and support of leukemia research benefits from YTAC’s support, specifically for its $1000 direct patient aid program checks for Texas leukemia patients.
Clayton Dabney Foundation for Kids, which provides support and assistance to families of terminal pediatric cancer patients through its Medicine of the Heart program.
Medical City Children’s Hospital Camp iHope, a camp for kids ages 7 to 16 with any cancer diagnosis, and their siblings, where they get to be kids again.
Bridge Breast Network, an organization that helps underinsured, uninsured, and low-income individuals across 17 North Texas counties who would otherwise go without cancer screenings or treatment.
Mary Crowley Cancer Research Center, which has enrolled more than 5,300 patients in over 300 FDA-approved clinical trials. YTAC funds support a clinical trial serving triple-negative breast cancer phase one drug testing.
UT Southwestern research and Dr. Erin Lampson, the chief fellow at UT Southwestern’s division of pediatric hematology and oncology. She and her team are researching medical complications affecting pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) survivors.

The ninth annual BubblyQ is October 13, 7-10 pm, at Fearing’s at the Ritz-Carlton, Dallas hotel. Ticket purchases and silent auction registration can be done online.

BubblyQ wouldn’t be possible without the help of BubblyQ chef chair Catharine Flagg, operations chair Daniella Giglio, and silent auction chair Heidi Benda; sponsors such as Bloomberg and Sewell; and the continued support of various philanthropic families in the YTAC community.

Want to get involved with YTAC? Learn more about the organization via their website, or sign up for regular updates via email.

James Carroll, Katherine Harper, Phuong Tran, Dean Fearing

Photo courtesy of YTAC

James Carroll, Katherine Harper, Phuong Tran, Dean Fearing

young-professionals fundraisers promoted

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.

fundraisers christine baranski texas womens foundation nonprofits the gilded age luncheons celebrities

BubblyQ Is Back

Charitable young professionals get ready for Dallas’ bubbliest party of the year

James Carroll, Katherine Harper, Phuong Tran, Dean Fearing

A Glittering Celebration

Christine Baranski brings Hollywood sparkle to Dallas luncheon

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