As part of its ongoing investment in lifecycle leadership development for women and girls, Texas Women’s Foundation hosted a powerful day of leadership, learning and inspiration on May 8th at the Omni Dallas Hotel. From thought-provoking conversations to unforgettable moments honoring trailblazing women and rising young leaders, the day helped support the Foundation’s mission of building #StrongWomenBetterTexas
The day began with #BESTSELF, where nearly 200 students who came together for engaging workshops focused on making smart, informed decisions, navigating the physical and emotional changes of adolescence, and harnessing the power of their voices to create meaningful change.
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| Karen Hughes White, Cris Zertuche Wong, Carrie Freeman Parsons |
In the afternoon, TXWF hosted its annual Leadership Forum – a dynamic masterclass featuring microlearning sessions with the recipients of the 2025 Maura and Young Leader Awards. Author, speaker and 2025 Maura Award recipient Anne Chow kicked things off with a Ted Talk-style “ANNE Talk,” sharing insights from her book Lead Bigger. TXWF Board Director Deborah Hunter Johnson led a ”POWER Panel” discussion on advancing women and girls in STEM with 2025 Maura awardees Dr. Carine Feyten, Dr. Nuripama “Rupa” DeSilva, and Jennifer Bartkowski. Afterward, the crowd was treated to exciting “5 in 5” interviews in which two young students from Irma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School, a Young Women’s Preparatory Network School, asked five “rapid-fire questions in five minutes of TXWF’s 2025 Young Leader awardees Haleigh Jones and Cristal Retana Lule. The Forum wrapped up with some “REAL Talk” between Anne Chow and NBC5 Anchor Deborah Ferguson.
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| Theresa Flores, Liz Cedillo-Pereira, Linda Valdez Thompson |
At the Celebration Dinner following the Forum, event co-chairs Debbie Dennis, Chief Customer Officer and SVP Human Resources and Corporate Affairs at Oncor Electric Delivery, and Brooke Hopkins, Managing Director at Alvarez & Marsal, welcomed attendees and thanked key partners.
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| Debbie Dennis, Brooke Hopkins (event co-chairs) |
Texas Women’s Foundation Board Chair Carrie Freeman Parsons greeted event guests, sharing, “With clarity of purpose and your support, we’ve continued to fulfill our mission and grow our impact year over year for the past 39 years.” Carrie also introduced the individuals who nominated the 2025 Young Leader awardees:
· Trey Crawford introduced Haleigh Jones, Crawford, Wishnew & Lang Attorney.
· Maria Mendez introduced Cristal Retana Lule, Children’s Health Vice President of Community Relations.
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Awards Selection Committee Co-chair and previous Maura Award recipient Brenda Jackson introduced the 2025 Maura honorees and their presenters.
· Kim Lyle introduced Jennifer Bartkowski, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas CEO.
· Mylinh Luong introduced Anne Chow, The Rewired CEO Founder.
· Samantha Barakat introduced Dr. Rupa DeSilva, Parkland Health, UT Southwestern Medical Center Professor.
· Christopher Johnson introduced Dr. Carine Feyten, Texas Woman’s University Chancellor and President.
· Former TXWF Board Chairs Caren Lock and Shonn Brown introduced Cynt Marshall, Marshalling Resources Founder and The Dallas Mavericks (retired CEO), who was unable to attend the event.
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| Dianne Chipps Bailey, Dodee Frost Crockett, Jennifer Chandler, Alesia Coffman, Crissie Fortmeyer |
Dia Wall, WFAA anchor and reporter, hosted a conversation with the 2025 Maura Award recipients who shared their insight on everything from healthcare, to education, the wage gap and increased representation of women and Women of Color in leadership.
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| Karen Hughes White, Effie Dennison, Kimberly Bizor Tolbert, Caren Lock |
Incoming TXWF Board Chair, Cris Zertuche Wong closed out the program by thanking all in attendance and invited guests to attend TXWF’s upcoming 40th Annual Luncheon at the Omni Hotel on November 14.
For additional partners and patrons, visit https://txwf.org/join-us/events/lfac-event/
Photo credit: Kim Leeson and Guy Rogers/TXWF
Share the love with Children's patients, families, and caregivers with a Valentine’s Day card!
Be incredible by sending a special Valentine’s Day message with an e-Card to a patient or team member at Children’s Health℠.
Being in the hospital can make children feel lonely, especially when it means they can’t join in their favorite holiday traditions. Your kind words and bright Valentine’s cards will help everyone in our hospitals feel the love.
Customize and send your Valentine's Day e-card now.
Help reach the goal of 5,000 Valentine's!
Celebrate friendships with a PRESCREENING of the much-anticipated blockbuster movie, Wicked at AMC NorthPark 15 on Thursday, November 21 benefiting Children's Health Dallas. Tickets start at $25 and include a small popcorn and fountain drink. We also have a variety of sponsorships available as well. If you have any questions, please email aseasonofgiving@childrensauxiliary.org.
Movies with a Mission was founded in 2021 by Ella Kate Nayfa and Barrett Gibbins to raise awareness and support pediatric mental health programs. Thank you to AMC NorthPark 15 and NorthPark Center for partnering with Movies with a Mission and the Women’s Auxiliary to Children’s Medical Center Dallas.
Wicked (pre-release screening)
Nov. 21, 2024
6 p.m. – Red Carpet Event
7 p.m. – Movie, Wicked (rated PG)
Movies with a Mission - Children’s Medical Center Foundation
The BOO Yard Sign Challenge, sponsored by Advancial, takes simple neighborhood trickery to a community fundraiser. BOO your friends and neighbors by secretly leaving the sign in their yards and Halloween treats at their doorsteps without them seeing you.
For every sign purchased, proceeds benefit Children’s Health and a patient will receive a treat.
Signs are on sale online for $20 each and available for pickup starting on Sept. 7. Your signs can be picked up from neighborhood captains across Dallas and Plano. Find your closest location during checkout by searching the zip code of your home, work or school address, then select a pickup date and time.
When you BOO your neighbors, instructions on how to join the fun are on the back of every sign.
Purchase your BOO now:
Doug and Kasey sat at a conference table as a team of doctors broke the news: Their then 18-month-old son had a rare disease that was causing him to fall and be unable to get up.
A few days earlier, Kasey had rushed their son, Will, to the Emergency Room at Children’s Medical Center Plano after one of these falls, knowing in her gut something wasn’t right.
Doctors told the couple that the rare disease -- called Leigh syndrome, which impacts only a few thousand people in the world -- was progressive, had no cure and many patients didn’t live past the age of 10.
And ever since then, for the last seven years, Doug and Kasey have been trying to save their son’s life.
“I don’t think any parent could accept that there’s no cure for your child,” Doug said. “We had to do what we could to try to find an answer.”
They emailed academic researchers in the United States and internationally. They called drug companies. They drove to different cities in hope of an experimental treatment.
But every answer was the same: “There’s nothing we can do to help you.”
Kasey and Doug have watched their now 9-year-old son lose the ability to walk, lose the ability to swallow and eat food and lose the ability to speak. They monitor his various medications and feeding tubes, while also caring for their youngest child, Lauren. And every night, one of them sleeps in a twin bed in Will’s room.
The family found hope in 2018 when their neurologist told them about the development of a Gene Therapy program starting at UT Southwestern in collaboration with Children’s Health.
“We had reached out to many top medical institutions, hospitals and researchers throughout the country, but Children’s Health was the one that was willing to say, ‘Yes, we can help you,’” Doug said.
But the couple would need to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to launch the experiments and another $1 million for human trials.
It wasn’t a cure – only an experiment. They don’t know if it will work. And they don’t know if it will manifest in time to help their son.
But they had to try.
“To go from being diagnosed with this ultra-rare disease, where we thought, ‘How unlucky can we be?’” Doug said. “To having this potential miracle breakthrough presented to us right in our own backyard in Dallas, it feels like we hit the lottery.”
Kasey and Doug are fundraising not only to save their son’s life, but for the lives of other children and families like them navigating a rare disease diagnosis.
So far, the family – joined by other rare diagnosis families – have raised more than $1 million and hope to have a clinical trial launch soon.
“We tell Will about this therapy that we’re fundraising for. We tell him that we don’t know what the results are going to be. But he knows there’s hope,” Kasey said.
“We survive on hope.”
The Red Balloon League is an unstoppable force.
Find out how YOU can help here:
The Women’s Auxiliary to Children’s Medical Center was formed in 1962 by combining the auxiliaries from Bradford Memorial Hospital for Babies, Children’s Hospital of Texas and Richmond Freeman Memorial Clinic. In the very early days, Auxiliary volunteers assisted hospital staff in all aspects of running the hospital, from helping with admitting patients and running samples to the lab to assisting physicians.
As Children’s Medical Center grew, so did the unwavering support of the Women’s Auxiliary. Today, two strong Auxiliary chapters support the hospital’s mission to make life better for children at the Dallas and Plano campuses. To continue its tradition and rich history of service, the Auxiliary carries out this mission by raising funds for hospital priorities, offering uplifting activities for patient families, providing support and recognition to hospital staff, and raising awareness of the hospital in the community.
The Women's Auxiliary celebrates 58 years of service and over 850 members dedicated to serving the patients and families treated at Children's Health. Since its inception, the Auxiliary has contributed more than $22 million to the Children’s Medical Center Foundation.
Learn more about membership here:
Join Children’s Health virtually for an intimate conversation about how breakthrough thinking led to innovative solutions during COVID-19 that have transformed the way we do business today. Plus, hear how the dedication to excellence and spirit of innovation at Children’s Health drives the field of pediatric research forward.
Panelists
https://give.childrens.com/get-involved/join-a-group/innovators
