Harvest 2022 A 40th Anniversary Celebration
Harvest Gala Kicks Off 40 Years of Service Celebration
On Saturday, February 19, 2022, the North Texas Food Bank hosted a black-tie gala event at the Dallas Omni hotel commemorating the organization’s 40 years of providing hunger relief in North Texas.
In recognition of the NTFB’s 40th anniversary, the Harvest event was chaired by one of the Food Bank’s founders, Ambassador Kathryn Hall, along with her husband, Craig. Liz Minyard, another of the Food Bank’s founders, served as Honorary Chair. Speaking at the event was Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America and one of Time Magazine’s most influential people of 2020.
With the support of an anonymous donor who was matching dollars raised Saturday night, the total funds raised through Harvest were a staggering $1,154,000, which translates to nearly 3.5 MILLION nutritious meals for our neighbors facing hunger.
This year’s Harvest presenting sponsor was Albertsons/Tom Thumb. Emmy Award and Associated Press award-winning journalist and co-anchor of NBC 5 Today, Laura Harris, served as the emcee for the event.
“Forty years ago, four Dallas women made a pledge to fight hunger in North Texas. Through persistence and generous community support, these visionary leaders – Jo Curtis, Kathryn Hall, Lorraine Griffin Kircher, and Liz Minyard – collected and distributed donations of surplus food through a network of charitable organizations,” noted Trisha Cunningham, President and CEO of the North Texas Food Bank.
“Today, the NTFB stands as one of the largest organizations in Feeding America’s national network of over 200 food banks. Perhaps the greatest lesson we’ve realized throughout our history is the impact that one person can have in the fight against hunger,” Cunningham added.
The evening ended with the announcement that the NTFB received a $10.5 million donation from the Perot family, a transformational gift that will support the Nourish North Texas campaign for Food for Today and Hope for Tomorrow. This marks one of the largest contributions in the food bank’s 40-year history.
