Tavia and Clark Hunt host the Kick-Off for AWARE Affair CELEBRATE THE MOMENTS Blooms of Hope
Fighting Alzheimer’s Disease Since 1989
Featured photo: Tavia Clark, hostess; Sarah B. Smith and Ginny Bond Fein, AWARE Affair CELEBRATE THE MOMENTS Blooms of Hope chairs; Sharon Ballew, President, AWARE. *
AWARE’s signature purple spotlight at the grand entrance of the home of hosts Tavia and Clark Hunt welcomed guests as they arrived for the Kick-Off for the AWARE Affair CELEBRATE THE MOMENTS Blooms of Hope gala.
Gala chairs Ginny Bond Fein and Sarah B. Smith welcomed friends and supporters as they entered the Hunts’ home which was full of splendid flower arrangements created by Garden Gate. Everyone enjoyed bites by Food Glorious Food and signature cocktails created especially for the event by sponsors ROXOR Artisan Gin featuring ROXOR’s Blooming Gin & Tonic and Katy Trail Vodka featuring Katy’s Smokin’ Pie.
Tavia and Clark Hunt, hosts 
Tom Nolan, Penny Reid
AWARE’s president Sharon Ballew welcomed everyone and thanked the Hunts for their kindness and hospitality in opening their lovely home for tonight’s event. Tavia shared emotional and heartfelt remarks about her dear friend, Sarah, saying how she truly admires Sarah’s strength and courage since her mother’s diagnosis of early onset Alzheimer’s disease. Tavia applauded Sarah, saying she is one of her heroes and is grateful for her friendship. She also praised Sarah for writing her book about the experience, Broken Beauty.
Paige Locke, Billie Leigh Rippey
Jack and Janet Broyles
In further remarks, Sharon said AWARE had raised $13.5 million since 1989 when the group first started fighting Alzheimer’s disease and read the list of grant recipients, which are the organizations that will benefit from the gala, listed below.
Carol Stabler, Kay Hammond 
Sharon and Bob Walker
Sarah thanked Tavia and Clark for their continuing involvement in the community, giving time in service to others and gave heartfelt thanks to everyone for their support. Ginny echoed those thanks and shared some background about her friendship with Sarah, saying their mothers have known each other since they were together as Kilgore College Rangerettes and are dear friends. She thanked this evening’s sponsors and recognized Kim and David McDavid, last year’s honorary chairs and honorary chairs emeritus for this year’s gala. Gold Crown donated the valet parking.
Ginny Bond Fein, AWARE gala co-chair; Ann Jackson, Carie Judson, Wendy Benson Landes
AWARE Affair CELEBRATE THE MOMENTS Blooms of Hope happens on Friday, April 5, 2019 at Sixty Five Hundred, located at 6500 Cedar Springs. The event begins with a cocktail reception and silent auction followed by a three-course dinner. Guests will also enjoy special feature presentations, a spirited live auction, and dancing with music spanning the decades. A fabulous and fun evening!
Carole Jordan, Jolie Humphrey, Julie Brown 
David Bearden, Jr., Sarah Bearden Smith, AWARE gala co-chair; David Bearden, Sr
Underwriting and Sponsorships: Individual tickets begin at $300. Host couple tickets begin at $1,000. Sponsorships and underwriting begins at $5,000. For tickets and more information please visit the website AWAREDallas.org
Contact: Sharon Walker, 214-369-2549 or therwalks@sbcglobal.net
AWARE Grant Recipients:
- Texas Winds Musical Outreach: Support for the Concerts for Seniors program, which provides two
concerts by professional musicians in each of 95 nursing homes and adult day
care facilities serving individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and related
dementias as well as the economically disadvantaged.
- Juliette Fowler Communities: Support for training, implementation, and certification of the
“I’m Still Here” program, a national model that provides a
person-centered approach to caring for persons with Alzheimer’s through social
engagement, new learning experiences, community service, and volunteerism. The program ensures that unique skills and
interests are incorporated into each patient’s day so that experiences are
fulfilling.
- C. C. Young: Funds to support a board-certified music therapist who will engage
with the Memory Care residents for 30 minutes to one hour a day, every day,
seven days a week, while becoming familiar with each resident and selecting
music on an individual basis according to their preferences.
- Dallas Museum of Art: Support for teaching honorariums, supplies, and staffing for
Meaningful Moments, a program designed to provide participants with Alzheimer’s
disease and related dementias and their families or caregivers with ways to
engage in art providing a continuing cultural opportunity to everyone
regardless of their ability.
- The Senior Source: Support for the Senior Companions
program matching trained volunteers with individuals with Alzheimer’s disease
and related dementias and their families needing assistance with meals,
errands, and light housekeeping providing caregivers with respite and/or time
to work outside the home.
- Center for Brain Health: Support for the second year of Studying Sleep
Architecture in Early Stage Alzheimer’s Disease to better understand how sleep
impacts cognitive health in aging individuals and what role it may play in
cognitive impairment. Results from this
three year study could motivate the formulation of better, more multifunctional
interventions to slow or halt the progression of cognitive decline in
Alzheimer’s disease.
- Dallas Chapter of the Alzheimer’s
Association:
Funds to support the hire of the Dallas Chapter’s Diversity and
Inclusion Coordinator. This individual
will develop a Hispanic Outreach manual and program called “Get the Facts”
directly dedicated to meeting the needs of the underserved and often
mono-lingual Dallas Hispanic community.
The program will use existing partnerships with Telemundo and Univision
television stations to help raise awareness and drive attendance to education
and support group opportunities.
- Jewish Family Service:
Support for the
salary of a three-quarter-time licensed Clinical Social Worker to provide
in-home mental health counseling, care management, and daily living support
services to 50 older adults with Alzheimer’s disease and 20 family members and
caregivers allowing patients to remain independent and living in their own
home.
- Center for Vital Longevity: Support for the salary of Chris Foster, Ph.D, currently working
under Dr. Karen Rodrigue, enabling him to continue the second year of a
three-year study of biomarker-based risk factors for healthy aging from data
collected by the lab from a sample of 200 adults ranging in age from 20-94
years old who are recruited from the Dallas community.
- Baylor Healthcare System: Salary support for the Baylor AT&T Memory Center to provide a trained care and support specialist onsite at the Baylor AT&T Memory Center. By placing this valuable service at the point of care, patients and their families in early diagnosis can receive disease education, caregiver skill training and support groups, elder law and financial planning, and a 24/7 helpline allowing physicians to focus on the medical issues surrounding the disease.
The Myrna D. Schlegel AWARE Scholarship Fund Recipients: Emilia Jasper, who is pursuing her Graduate Master
Degree in Family Health Nursing at TWU and Genova
Segura, who is working toward her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at TWU.
Media Sponsors: PaperCity,The Park Cities News/The Waters Family, MySweetCharity, Downtown Business News.
About AWARE: The Dallas Foundation, a 501(c)(3) publicly supported charity, is the fiscal sponsor of AWARE. In partnership with the Foundation, AWARE conducts an annual grant application review process resulting in the selection of the most exemplary nonprofit organizations working on the front lines in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease in Dallas and the North Texas region. AWARE provides funding and support to these outstanding groups that offer services, programs, education, and resources to those suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, their families and caregivers, and to organizations doing valuable research to find a prevention and cure. Since its founding in 1989, AWARE has donated $13.5 million towards this cause.
*Photos by Dana Driensky.
(Sharon Adams, Adams Communications Public Relations, is honored to represent AWARE.)
