78 GoodLifeFamilyMag.com JULY | AUGUST 2017 GoodLifeFamilyMag.com JULY | AUGUST 2017 79 Past Board President, KarenWald presented the Milton P. Levy, Jr. OutstandingVolunteer of theYear Award to US Congressman Pete Sessions, and his son Alex helps accept the award. A SPECIAL EVENING WITH JENNIFER NETTLES BENEFITING LAUNCHABILITY Grammy® Award-winning country superstar Jennifer Nettles lit up the stage at LaunchAbility’s 16th Special Evening event hosted by Alliance Data at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. Honorary Chairs were Chris and Shawn Spieth, Beth and Steve McGaw served as Event Chairs, and Jody Dean served as emcee. Over the past 16 years, A Special Evening has garnered approximately 2,000 sponsors and raised more than $2.5 million to support the launching of adults with disabilities into independence through meaningful work. www.LaunchAbility.org PhotoCredit:LisaStewart Jennifer Nettles, left, with Anne Hudson, Director of Disability Hiring. POT OF GOLD LUNCHEON BENEFITING RAINBOW DAYS More than 580 guests raised over $250,000 as Rainbow Days celebrated it’s 35th anniversary at the Pot of Gold luncheon featuring Glennon Doyle Melton. Funds raised support pro- grams and services for vulnerable, at-risk children and youth facing adversity in the greater Dallas community. Since 1982, the Dallas-based nonprofit has helped more than 200,000 children build coping skills and resilience to create positive futures. www.rainbowdays.org PhotoCreditRobWythe/Gittings ToddWhithorne, Master of Ceremonies; Donna Whitehead, Associate Pastor, Lovers Lane United Method- ist Church; Cathey Brown, Founder and CEO, Rainbow Days, Inc.; Shelly Slater,WFAA Channel 8 contributor and moderator. Honorary Co-Chair Shawn Spieth CarmaletaWhiteley Felton, 2017Woman of theYear; Executive Chef Tom Parlo, Rosewood Mansion onTurtle Creek; Sharon Ballew, President, Les Femmes du Monde. THE FAMILY PLACE OPENS ANN MOODY PLACE The Family Place hosted an Open House for the new Ann Moody Place, which houses 47 emergency shelter beds, non-residential outreach counseling for adults and chil- dren, medical and dental clinics, and offices for programs, administration, and the Be Project, a teen dating and bullying education program. The facility allows for expansion of the Dignity at Work job readiness program and provides animal kennels for victims who do not want to leave their pets behind when fleeing abusive situations. Ann Moody Place was built with widespread community support, including a lead gift of $5 million from the Moody Foundation and a $1 million matching grant from Highland Capital Man- agement. www.familyplace.org 24-hourhotline: 214.941.1991 *Seetheentirestoryon goodlifefamilymag.com NEW FRIENDS NEW LIFE LUNCHEON New Friends New Life (NFNL) set a new record by raising over $1.06 million at their 14th Annual Luncheon to fight sex trafficking and transform the lives of sexually exploited women and children. Honorary luncheon chairs were Gail and Dr. R. Gerald Turner and luncheon chairs were Lisa Cooley and Tanya Foster. Joe Ehrmann, co-founder of the NFL Foundation-funded InSideOut Initiative and a former NFL Pro Bowl athlete was keynote speaker. Ehrmann now devotes his life to teaching young men a whole new meaning of masculinity.“Being a man means that empathy, integrity, and living a life of ser- vice to others—all are more important than points on a scoreboard.” Serving approximately 1,000 women, teens, and children annually, NFNL provides holistic services for victims of trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation including access to education, job training, interim financial assistance and mental health counseling. www.newfriendsnewlife.org (Left)PhotoCredit:KristinaBowman (Right)PhotoCredit:MaggieHargrave LES FEMMES DU MONDE NAMES CARMALETA WHITELEY FELTON 2017 WOMAN OF THE YEAR Les Femmes du Monde president, Sharon Ballew, announced Car- maleta Whiteley Felton as the 2017 Woman of the Year at a reception hosted and sponsored by the Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek. The award will be presented at the November 1 gala at the Dallas Country Club, chaired by Barbara Daseke. Since its inception in 1961, Les Femmes du Monde has given over $670,000 to Children’s Health and $2 million to the World Affairs Council. Past honorees include Laura Bush, First Lady of Texas; Ruth Altshuler, Mary Kay Ash, Kay Bailey Hutchison, Ebby Halliday, and Margaret McDermott to name a few. Carmaleta Whiteley Felton said, upon her recognition,“I am follow- ing in the footsteps of so many amazing women who have given so much and are truly my heroes.” www.lesfemmesdumonde.org Photo Credit:DanaDriensky Lisa Cooley, luncheon co-chair; Kelly Cruse, exec. dir., NFNL; Joe Ehrmann, keynote speaker;Tanya Foster, luncheon co-chair; GailTurner, Dr. R. GeraldTurner, honorary chairs 3RD ANNUAL BOOTS & BLESSINGS GALA BENEFITING ALLY’S WISH The Third Annual Boots & Blessings Gala presented by Lisa and Greg Drew took place at Gilley’s Dallas to benefit Ally’s Wish. Ally’s Wish, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in North Texas devoted to granting a last “wish”to terminally ill mothers with young children. Founded in honor of Allyson Hendrickson, Ally’s Wish provides family memories that last a lifetime. Wishes are granted in the form of services, gifts, transporta- tion, lodging or any other wish the mother may have. www.allyswish.org. Grant Sparks,Todd Latiolais, JuliaWalsh, Andrea Sparks, Alan Schonborn (Gov. Greg Abbott’s Child SexTraffickingTeam (CCST) State ProtectHer Award Recipient) Radio host Kellie Rasberry, here withVicki Putnam, served as emcee for the evening HISTORY WITH A TWIST Tiffany Derry’s Southern creations and Charlie Papaceno’s historic cocktails – 1940s Style –delighted guests at Dallas Heritage Vil- lage’s 5th annual History with a Twist presented by Sidley Austin, LLP. History with a Twist raises important proceeds to support learning opportunities for students and adults at Dallas Heritage Village. Dallas Heritage Village is an immersive history landscape that features a wide variety of authentic 19th century pioneer and Victorian homes and commercial buildings in Texas. www.dallasheritagevillage.org. PhotoCredit:LisaStewart Tiffany Derry, all-star top chef; Melissa Prycer, president and exec. director, Dallas Heritage Village; Charlie Papaceno, In- dustry Alley;Trey Pugh, chair, board of directors, Dallas HeritageVillage Mike and Sammye Myers with Mayor Mike Rawlings Paige Flink, Frances Moody Dahlberg, Lynn McBee Bill Cohn, Shirley Cohn, Kersten Rettig, and Clark Knippers Good Times for a Good Cause