Coronavirus pivot

4 new virtual fundraisers to add to Dallas-Fort Worth social diaries this fall

6907 Lakewood Blvd., Lakewood Home Festival 2020

The Lakewood Home Tour will start with a virtual party this year.

Photo by Jenifer McNeil Baker

While the coronavirus pandemic continues to prevent nonprofits from holding large luncheons, galas, and parties, they're still finding creative ways to raise crucial funds.

Some, like the Dallas Symphony Orchestra League, are simply holding scaled-down versions of their events, with strict attendance limits for social distancing. But most are pivoting to virtual formats.

Below are the latest Dallas-Fort Worth fundraisers that patrons can join using their favorite electronic device. More upcoming virtual benefits are listed here.

Virtually TITAS Gala, October 6
TITAS' annual performance gala, which normally takes place in person during a full season, will feature all seven U.S. dance companies from the Dallas dance group's 2020-21 season. They include New York's Ballet Hispanico, Aspen/Santa Fe Ballet, Alonzo King LINES Ballet out of San Francisco, and more. The event is free, and donations are accepted. Not only will the gala benefit TITAS, but it will also give the companies an opportunity to present their work to the public at a time when performances are not happening in person. The gala will start at 7 pm, and registration is required here. Once registered, patrons will receive an email with viewing instructions.

Epilepsy Foundation Texas Virtual Dinner Party, October 24
The local Epilepsy Foundation is partnering with Del Frisco's Grille to bring the restaurant home. Participants will pick up a "culinary kit" containing ingredients for a gourmet steak and salmon dinner, salad, side, and bottle of wine. Then, at 6:30 pm, Hell's Kitchen winner, chef Ariel Fox, will join in virtually for private meal preparation instruction. All proceeds benefit the foundation's seizure clinics, school first aid education, and summer camp programs — all of which are offered at no cost to communities. Tickets, $275, can be reserved through the website.

Heart (at Home) for the Homeless benefiting Union Gospel Mission of Tarrant County, November 10
The sixth annual Union Gospel Mission benefit will be presented for guests to enjoy at home. Favorite Fort Worth singer-songwriter Josh Weathers will be the featured entertainer at a virtual, hour-long concert experience that begins at 7 pm. Tickets, $100, can be purchased through the website, and sponsorships are still available. A virtual event admission link will be emailed before the concert, and one admission link will be good for an entire household. Union Gospel Mission provides love, hope, respect, and a new beginning for those experiencing homelessness in Tarrant County.

Lakewood Home Festival Virtual Auction Party, November 13
The 44th Annual Lakewood Home Tour has two parts, neither of them a "traditional" home tour. The weekend of events, November 13-15, starts with a free “Lakewood Live” virtual auction party. A Saturday Night Live-style presentation will include pre-recorded skits, special musical performances, and both live and silent auctions. Guests are encouraged to don their SNL-inspired costumes and party in place. (Party Packs, premium gift baskets filled with a DIY cocktail kit, merchandise, and more, are available for pre-purchase.)

Then, the home tour will proceed as a street-view only event on Saturday and Sunday from 10 am-5 pm. The official home tour guidebook is available online for $20 and is the only way to see interior photographs. So you drive up to a home, flip through the book to read about what's behind the doors, and drive on to the next one. All proceeds go to the Woodrow Wilson feeder pattern of schools; for more information, visit the website.

health charity-guide galas fundraisers

the rich get richer

28 Dallas billionaires make new Forbes list of world's richest people

Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

undefined

According to Forbes, there has “never been a better time to be a billionaire” than in 2026, and the publication's newest World’s Billionaires List has revealed the 28 Dallas billionaires that have risen among the wealthiest worldwide.

Koch Inc. stakeholder Elaine Marshall and her family are the richest Dallas residents, ranking No. 71 on the global list with an estimated net worth of $30.9 billion. Her net worth has grown by $2.6 billion since last year.

Oil magnate Lyndal Stephens Greth and her family are the second richest Dallasites in 2026, ranking only six spots behind Marshall with an estimated net worth of $30 billion. Greth was the former chair of major oil production company Endeavor Energy Resources, which she sold to Diamondback Energy in 2024.

Out of the 390 billionaire newbies that made their debut onto the list this year, these two call Dallas-Fort Worth home: financial services investor Thomas Dundon, and oil and gas investor and data center businessman Toby Neugebauer and his family.

Dundon made his debut on the 2026 list with a $2.3 billion net worth. Dundon founded subprime auto lender Drive Financial in 1997, sold the company to global banker Santander in 2015, and came away with $700 million out of the deal, Forbes said in his profile. He currently serves as the chairman and managing partner of Dallas-based private investment firm Dundon Capital Partners. Most recently, Dundon sold his minority stake in the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes, and is in the process of buying NBA team the Portland Trail Blazers.

According to Forbes, Neugebauer was the CEO and executive chairman of the short-lived controversial "anti-woke" fintech startup GloriFi, which filed for bankruptcy in 2023. Neugebauer has since been embroiled in what Bloomberg Law described as a "complex legal back and forth" with the investors "related to the control and eventual closure of the banking and financial services company he founded." But his $2 billion current net worth was enough to land him in a multi-person tie for the No. 2052 spot on the list.

Here's how the rest of Dallas' billionaires fared on this year's list:

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and family: ranked No. 128 with an estimated net worth of $20.3 billion, up from $16.6 billion in 2025
Banking and real estate mogul Andy Beal: No. 238, $12.6 billion, up from $12 billion
Money manager Ken Fisher: No. 226, $13.2 billion, up from $11.2 billion
Hotel and investment guru Robert Rowling: No. 402, $8.8 billion, up from $8.5 billion
Oil and gas tycoon Kelcy Warren: No. 477, $7.8 billion, up from $7.1 billion
Oil and real estate titan Ray Lee Hunt: No. 623, $6.6 billion, down from $6.8 billion
Real estate bigwig H. Ross Perot Jr.: No. 649, $6.5 billion, up from $4.6 billion
Media magnate Mark Cuban: No. 694, $6 billion, up from $5.7 billion
Margot Birmingham Perot, widow of tech and real estate entrepreneur H. Ross Perot Sr.: No. 720, $5.8 billion, up from $5.3 billion
Oil and gas honcho Trevor Rees-Jones: No. 694, $6 billion, up from $5.2 billion
Private equity firm co-founder Carl Thoma: No. 730, $5.7 billion, up from $4.4 billion
Oil and gas magnate Ray Davis: No. 1108, $3.9 billion, up from $3.6 billion
Biotech entrepreneur Ben Lamm: No. 1108, $3.9 billion, up from $3.7 billion
H-E-B executive Stephen Butt & family: No. 1325, $3.2 billion, up from $3.1 billion
Real estate mogul Fernando De Leon: No. 1376, $3.1 billion, up from $2.8 billion
Banking businessman Gerald Ford: No. 1376, $3.1 billion, up from $2.7 billion
Media entrepreneur Todd Wagner: No. 1834, $2.3 billion, up from $1.9 billion
Kansas City Chiefs owners Clark Hunt and family, Daniel Hunt and family, and Sharron Hunt and family: tied for No. 2052, $2 billion, up from $1.6 billion
Telecommunications founder Kenny Troutt: No. 2386, $1.7 billion, flat since 2024
Online auction CEO A. Jayson Adair: No. 2481, $1.6 billion, down from $2 billion
RealPage founder Stephen Winn: No. 2600, $1.5 billion, flat since 2024
Oil tycoon and film producer Timothy Headington: No. 3017, $1.2 billion, flat since 2024

Missing from the 2026 list is tech entrepreneur Darwin Deason, who died in December 2025. Deason, 85, founded Dallas-based information technology company Affiliated Computer Services in 1988 and later sold it to Xerox in 2010.

Elsewhere in Dallas-Fort Worth, Walmart heiress Alice Walton has maintained her elite status as the world’s richest woman for the third year in a row. Walton knocked French L’Oreal heiress Françoise Bettencourt Meyers down to second place in 2024, and has remained at the top ever since. Walton is the 14th richest person on the planet, moving up one spot on the list from last year.

Walton’s current net worth is estimated at $134 billion, an eye-catching $33 billion higher than her 2025 net worth of $101 billion. She is the first American woman worth $100 billion, and one of only 20 “centi-billionaires” worldwide claiming 12-figure fortunes, also known as the "$100 Billion Club."

Elsewhere in Texas, Austin billionaire Elon Musk was declared the world's richest person for the second consecutive year, and Forbes said his “grip on the top spot is as strong as it’s ever been.”

“Musk became the first person to hit $500 billion in wealth, in October,” Forbes said. “Then $600 billion and $700 billion, within four days in December. Then $800 billion, in February.”

The Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI founder’s current net worth has skyrocketed to $839 billion — a shocking $497 billion more than his 2025 net worth.

forbes billionaires dallas society