Steve Burns, best known as the original host of Nickelodeon’s “Blue’s Clues,” will be the featured speaker at Grant Halliburton Foundation’s 17th Annual Beacon of Hope Community Luncheon on Friday, March 13, 2026, at the Omni Dallas Hotel (555 S. Lamar St., Dallas). Burns will present “The Cost of Showing Up Happy: Burnout and the Wisdom of Asking for Help.”
The luncheon is the first fundraising event of Grant Halliburton Foundation’s 20th anniversary year.
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| Steve Burns |
As the implacably happy, beloved host of “Blue’s Clues,” Steve Burns was the guy who sang, danced and cheerfully bolstered children’s self-esteem. What most don’t know is that he was doing so with undiagnosed severe clinical depression. He will talk about the following:
· What is the cost of forcing joy?
· How can one maintain peak-level achievement and be completely burned out at the same time?
· And once it’s all over, how do you re-engage with your own life when the tank is completely empty?
Burns will share lessons from his own struggles as “the happiest depressed person in North America” and how he has learned to apply the messages he shared with an entire generation.
The Beacon of Hope Community Luncheon supports Grant Halliburton Foundation’s work to provide education, resources and support for children, teen and young adult mental health. Event sponsorships and underwriting range from $600 to $25,000. Individual tickets go on sale in February for $250. To learn more and to purchase a sponsorship or underwriting opportunity, visit GrantHalliburton.org/boh.
Amy and Michael Roseman and Meredith and David Camp are the 2026 Beacon of Hope Community Luncheon co-chairs. The founding luncheon chair is Barb Farmer.
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| Amy and Michael Roseman, Co-Chairs |
Kevin Hall, president of Grant Halliburton Foundation, said, “Steve helped shape how generations of children learned about curiosity, kindness, and problem-solving. We’re honored to hear his honest story and how those same values continue to guide his approach to mental health today.”
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| Meredith and David Camp |
Since 2006, the Foundation has provided mental health education, training and support to nearly 350,000 students, educators, parents and professionals, thanks to funds raised from the Beacon of Hope Luncheon.
Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among Texas youth ages 10-24 (CDC). The Beacon of Hope Community Luncheon aims to bring focus to the vital work needed to educate the North Texas community on adolescent mental health and suicide prevention. Through its work in North Texas schools and communities, Grant Halliburton Foundation aims to change this reality as it works to promote awareness and understanding of teen and young adult mental health and to prevent suicide.
About Steve Burns
Steve Burns is best known as the original host of Nickelodeon’s “Blue’s Clues,” where he spent seven surreal years solving mysteries with a cartoon dog and a talking mailbox. Then he disappeared. On purpose.
Since then, Steve has released indie rock albums, toured with The Flaming Lips, wrote the theme song for “Young Sheldon,” been a host and storyteller for The Moth and currently hosts the new podcast “Alive with Steve Burns.” In 2021 and 2024, he went massively viral by quietly breaking the internet with a heartfelt message to a generation of now-grown-up viewers.
Benefitting 
