Aristocratic Afternoon

British countess regales Dallas luncheon with tales from Downton Abbey's Highclere Castle

What: Tales from Highclere Castle, A Writer’s Garden Literary Symposium and Luncheon

Where: Dallas Arboretum

The 411: Dallas' most regal luncheon of the season transported guests to the dining room of Downtown Abbey, where they dined on an elegant multicourse meal while wine stewards kept glasses full, and the hostess even dropped a funny tidbit about Lady Mary. (More on that in a sec.)

Lady Fiona Carnarvon, the Right Honorable Countess of Carnarvon, author and real-life Lady of Highclere Castle - otherwise known as the filming site of TV's Downton Abbey - was the featured speaker at A Writer’s Garden Literary Symposium and Luncheon benefiting the Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden and A Woman’s Garden on October 18.

Chaired by Dyann Skelton and Therese Rourk, with Donna and Herb Weitzman as honorary chairs and Sarah Jo Hardin as Women's Council president, the event was part of a week-long Noble Celebration of the 25^th anniversary of A Woman’s Garden and the 40^th anniversary of the Women’s Council.

Fiona, the 8th Countess of Carnarvon, is married to Geordie, 8th Earl of Carnarvon. They have lived at, and cared for, England's Highclere Castle since 2001 - before Downton Abbey came knocking to make it the most famous castle in the world. (And yes, hey shared their home with the cast and crew of the TV series and movies.) She is the best-selling author of five books, historian, speaker, fundraiser, and manager of castle-related global endeavors, including award-winning Highclere Castle Gin and Chateau Highclere vineyards (with a forthcoming pink sparkling wine).

After a VIP reception, at which patrons could take a Gittings Photography portrait with Lady Carnarvon and enjoy mimosas, small bites, and a coffee bar sponsored by Patti Mitchell and Kay Weeks, the crowd sat down to a luncheon and presentation inside Rosine Hall.

Lady Carnarvon, who was making her first visit to Dallas, took the crowd on a fascinating and intimate journey through four seasons of Highclere and included projected photos and highlights from her new book, Seasons at Highclere.

Among the highlights were:

A history of Highclere from its earliest records in 1216 to today. For example, in 1908, there were 100 gardeners and today there are four. She and her husband often plan the landscape, then get in the dirt to plant and tend the grounds themselves.
They plant with the seasons in mind, and each season brings a new personality to the castle, from the spring fields of new grass to the summer wildflowers, the changing colors of leaves in fall, and the snow on trees in winter.
Paths are made on purpose for humans and wildlife to enjoy. Trees are placed to encourage wandering, and flowers planted to encourage insect and bee habitats.
Life at Highclere includes a menagerie of animals, including "Lady Mary, the pig" and others. Animals (including other pigs, horses, sheep, and lambs) are named after characters in Downton Abbey. Chickens are named for characters from Jane Austen books. She and her husband have seven dogs.
This year they launched the Lady Carnarvon Rose and Highclere Castle Rose. The last time Lady Carnarvon saw Queen Elizabeth II (who was friends with Earl Carnarvon's parents) was at the Chelsea Flower Show.

As a special course of the luncheon, guests dined on an appetizer of Chilled Parsnip and Apple Soup, which was Lady Carnarvon’s recipe from Seasons at Highclere. It was followed by an entrée of Chicken Crepes with Creamy Mushroom Sauce and dessert of Molten Chocolate Lava Cake. Each guest's place was set with a cookie customized with Countess Carnarvon's royal cypher.

A spirited auction conducted by Samantha Sisler from Heritage Auctions took place, but everyone had the opportunity to go home with a special memento of the day - a copy of Seasons at Highclere autographed by Lady Carnarvon herself.

Who: Anne Stodghill, Devon Jones, Tricia Conover, Linda Spina, Nikki Beneke, Sharla Bush, Connie Rhoades, Lisa Meyer, Millie Bradley, Natalie Taylor, Nancy Greenbach, Annika Cail, Barbara Averitt, Linda Burk, Barb Garcia, Linda Gilmore, Jane Hardenbergh, Venise Stuart, Merena Gault, Dorothea Meltzer, Terry Irby, Ann Marie Scichili, Sharon Adams, and many more.

$A Writer\u2019s Garden$

Photos by Rob Wythe/Wythe Portrait Studio

Anne Stodghill, Devon Jones

celebrities luncheons fundraisers

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