parties

Pat Benatar and Laura Ward Help Raise Millions at Houston Children’s Charity Gala

Pat Benatar and Laura Ward Help Raise Millions at Houston Children’s Charity Gala

Ryan Jay, Amber Jay, Laura Ward

LAURA WARD, DUBBED one of Houston’s first ladies of philanthropy by Houston CityBook, took the stage at the 25th annual Houston Children’s Charity gala to welcome a fired-up crowd and rock legends to the Post Oak Hotel. Pat Benatar and hubby Neil Giraldo were the headliners at the event, always one of the liveliest and best attended events of the season — and this year a record breaker for its haul of more than $3.6 million!

“Chaired by Houston philanthropist Sheridan Williams and supported by title sponsors BMW of West Houston and Momentum BMW Southwest, the rock & roll themed night at The Post Oak Hotel, raised $3,625,000 for underprivileged, abused, and disabled children,” noted a rep for the gala’s organizers.

Before Benatar and Giraldo took the stage, regaling the crowd with hits like “Heartbreaker” and “We Belong,” Ward, Williams and HCC board vice chairman Gary Becker offered remarks. A raucous live auction featuring a new electric BMW raised nearly $500,000, while a special interlude in which Tony Buzbee challenged the generous crowd to help by wheel-chair-accessible fans for families in need netted another $1.7 million.

Other special contributions were made by Tenenbaum Jewelers. Among the many boldface names in the crowd were Paige Fertitta, Melissa Juneau, Rob and Amy Pierce, Kristina and Paul Somerville, Bradley and Joanna Marks, and Jana and Richard Fant.

Houston Children’s Charity has been at the forefront of providing beds, vans, school supplies, clothing, Christmas toys and gifts and much more for Houston’s special children, it says.

Kristen Cannon and April Salazar

John Eddie Williams and Sheridan Williams

Russell Ybarra and Monica Ybarra

Tony Buzbee and Frances Buzbee

Mario Ellie and Gina Gaston

Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo

Bradley Marks, Joanna Marks, Hannah McNair, Cal McNair

Hallie Vanderhider and Neil Peeler

Steve Dujka and Mary Lou Dujka

Jeff Bagwell and Rachel Bagwell

Paige Fertitta and Deanna Barton

From Your Site Articles
Parties
promoted

Thrive & Inspire: ‘Results for Clients’ in Oil and Gas Drives Michelman & Robinson’s Varnado

Thrive & Inspire: ‘Results for Clients’ in Oil and Gas Drives Michelman & Robinson’s Varnado

Lauren Varnado, Houston Office Managing Partner at Michelman & Robinson, LLP and sought-after oil and gas lawyer

WHAT WAS THE highlight of 2022 at your business? That’s easy, launching Michelman & Robinson in Houston was, for me, the absolute high point of 2022 — and that’s in a year that included so many highlights. Without question, being named the firm’s Houston Office Managing Partner is and was a professional milestone that I’m so very proud of. That I’ve already been able to expand the office to 10 of us (and growing) and significantly move the needle in terms of the firm’s reach within the energy space is icing on the cake.

Keep Reading Show less
art

Five Fabulously Diverse Exhibits Are Arriving at Museum of Fine Arts Houston

Bill Viola’s ‘Ascension,’ on display as part of ‘Living with the Gods’ at MFAH

THE ARTIST WHO ushered in the expressionist movement in the early 20th century was not, in fact, Picasso or Matisse. It was Paul Gauguin, whose career spanned the decades just preceding the turn of the century. The French painter is the subject of the Museum of Fine Arts’ latest exhibit, Gauguin in the World, which was organized by Henri Loyrette (formerly of the Louvre and the Musée d’Orsay, Paris). The show, just one of the museum’s diverse winter season shows, debuted in Australia in June and will be on display through Feb. 16, 2025, at the MFAH, the only U.S. venue for the survey.

Keep Reading Show less
Art + Entertainment
art

Great Eight: Here Are Our Picks for Arts and Culture in the Holidays and New Year

Cirque du Soleil's 'Echo'


Keep Reading Show less
Art + Entertainment