austinbar.org MARCH 2024 | VOLUME 33, NUMBER 2
21st Annual Austin Bar Foundation Gala Raises Record $234,000
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ore than 500 guests attended the fairytale-themed Austin Bar Foundation Gala on Jan. 27, 2024, at the Four Seasons in downtown Austin. The $234,089 raised at this year’s Gala is the most ever. Members of the legal community arrived in their black-tie best, while others took advantage of the Gala’s theme, such as AYLA President Sarah Harp, who dressed in a red ballgown with black horns like Maleficent, and Austin Bar President Justice Chari L. Kelly in a sparkling pink-cream dress and blush pink roses in her hair. Attendees enjoyed an elegant pre-event cocktail hour while perusing the auction items generously donated by Austin Bar members and Austin businesses. After dinner, guests learned about the Austin Bar Foundation’s various projects and grant programs. Afterward, the live auction took place, and guests bid on nine travel packages, such as a six-night stay in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina; a four-night stay in Park City, Utah; and a four-night stay at the U.K.’s oldest hotel with airfare for two included. Following the live auction, Marty Murad with Murad Auctions led a lively Fund-a-Need session raising money for DEI-related
(L-R): Foundation Gala Committee CoChairs Nadia Bettac and Mary-Ellen King.
(L-R): Randy Howry, Austin Bar President Justice Chari L. Kelly, Marcy Hogan Greer, and Edna Ramón Butts. Howry, Greer, and Butts were the recipients of this year’s Distinguished Lawyer Award.
(L-R): Foundation Chair Amanda Arriaga and Jeff Edwards. Edwards was the recipient of this year’s David H. Walter Community Excellence Award.
legal services in Central Texas. Money raised from this portion of the program will be used to offer grants to Central Texas programs and entities offering DEI-related legal services. Next came the highlight of the evening: the presentation of awards. Edna Ramón Butts of Austin Independent School District, Marcy Hogan Greer of Alexander Dubose & Jefferson, and Randy
Howry of Howry Breen & Herman were this year’s Distinguished Lawyer honorees. Jeff Edwards of Edwards Law received this year’s David H. Walter Community Excellence Award. All four honorees’ careers and accomplishments were recapped in video presentations filmed and edited by Austin production company You & I Creative Co. (youandicreate.co).
David Talbot, retired chief of the Antitrust Division of the Texas Attorney General’s Office, and Lynn Boswell, AISD District 5 trustee, spoke about Butts. Laurie Bellegie Sharp and Catherine Morse spoke about Greer. Sean Breen, Laura Bellegie Sharp, Stephen E. McConnico, and Matt Dow spoke about Howry. Patrick continued on page 32.
Donate to the Austin Bar Foundation! Donations are still welcomed. Please use this QR code to make a donation that will support and expand the Foundation’s legalrelated charitable and education programs in Central Texas.