Party Watch

CNN anchor headlines Holocaust Museum Houston's $1.3 million fundraiser

Nearly 1,000 distinguished guests gathered at the Hilton Americas-Houston for the Holocaust Museum Houston's (HMH) annual Lyndon Baines Johnson Moral Courage Award Dinner. Dana Bash, CNN anchor and chief political correspondent, a third-generation Holocaust survivor, moderated the event which included a conversation with former Ambassador Stuart E. Eizenstat and Marion Ein Lewin, a child Holocaust survivor from the Netherlands.

The event raised nearly $1.3 million for HMH's general operating funds, which will focus on educational programming. Stephanie and Frank Tsuru chaired the fundraising dinner while Heidi and David Gerger and Leisa Holland-Nelson Bowman served as host committee chairs. Sue Smith served as honorary chair, with honorary vice chairs including Donna Fujimoto Cole, Nancy and Jack Dinerstein, Elaine Finger, Patti and Mike Morgan, Carol and David Neuberger, Jeri and Marc Shapiro, Ileana and Michael Treviño and Kay and the Honorable Fred Zeidman.

For 28 years, the LBJ Moral Courage Award has been awarded to individuals who have taken a stand against hatred and prejudice while using their influence to improve the world. This year's recipient, the Honorable Stuart E. Eizenstat, has served in six U.S. administrations. He began on the White House Staff of President Lyndon Johnson and still serves under President Biden as Special Advisor to Holocaust Issues to the Secretary of State Antony Blinken. His career, spanning decades, has always included work on Holocaust issues.

The rapt crowd listened attentively to a discussion between Eizendsate and Ein Lewin led by Bash which spanned topics from Eizenstat's personal relationship with President Lyndon B. Johnson to restitution for Holocaust survivors. Ein Lewin also told her family's story of survival and shared her hopes for a future without prejudice and hate.

"Ambassador Eizenstat has dedicated a lifetime of service to fighting antisemitism and honoring Holocaust survivors," said HMH interim co-executive director Tamara Savage. "We're honored to have presented such a poignant conversation between him, Marion Ein Lewin, and Dana Bash."

VIPs spotted in the crowd included Paula Goldstein, Drs. Mia and Remus Wright, Mady and Ken Kades, Phoebe and Bobby Tudor, Rhona and Bruce Caress, Y. Ping Sun and David Leebron, Regina Rogers, Brian Caress and Jessica Strehlow, Limor and Stuart Smith, Shelly and Brian Hendry, Benjamin Warren, Mindy and Steve Finger, and Barry Mandel and Dr.Scott Sawyer.

Photo by Wilson Parish

Barry Mandel and Dr. Scott Sawyer.

Painted with Purpose

21 Houston doctors trade scrubs for canvases at Arts of Healing gala

Photo by Alida Bonifaz

Chita Craft, Bethany Buchanan, and Nora Jarrard.

Turns out, creativity isn’t just for the canvas. It pulses through the hands of healers, too.

Photo by Alida Bonifaz

Chita Craft, Bethany Buchanan, and Nora Jarrard.

That was the spirit of The Arts of Healing Eighth Annual Gala, where physicians traded lab coats for aprons and oils to showcase their artistic prowess at The Post Oak Hotel on November 8.

Guests — close to 500 — were greeted by a floral fantasia courtesy of Blooming Gallery. A grand circular bar anchored the room, while a curated silent auction, wine pull, and an ultra-chic Valobra raffle for a diamond necklace tempted attendees. The centerpiece? Art by 21 physician-artists being honored that evening lining the entire ballroom.

Among the physicians celebrated for their contributions both in hospitals and on canvas were Dr. Shetal Amin, Dr. Deepak Bedi, Dr. Mark Dannenbaum, Dr. Meshann Fitzgerald, Dr. Matthew Goldman, Dr. Brandon Goodwin, Dr. Mollie Gordon, Dr. Maysoon Hamed, Dr. Emily Jamea, Dr. Henry Kuerer,Dr. JP LeFave, Dr. Dean Moore, Dr. Marlene Morales, Dr. Sehar Najamus, Dr. Eric Powitzky, Dr. Terrence Wadley, Dr. Cindy Williams, Dr. Jose Miguel Yamal, Dr. Sarrah Zadeh, and Dr. Isaac Raijman, who, alongside his wife, Lori Raijman, founded the Arts of Healing Foundation.

Co-chaired by Rachel and Warren Ellsworth IV and Natalie and Mark Bordman, the evening marked a fundraising high, collecting more than $560,000 to support The Arts of Healing and its Sunshine Kids Summer Camp collaboration. The initiative brings children facing cancer from across Texas together for creativity, connection, and joy.

A special musical cameo brought the house down when honoree Dr. Jeff Ross took the stage, trumpet in hand, for a guest appearance with Dry Water Band. The dance floor stayed thumping well into the night, a tribute to the spirit of creativity as medicine.

Summoning their inner Picassos were Sarah Collins, Michele and Youval Meicler, Kristen Collins, Betsy and Jimmy Montgomery, Courtney and Zac Harmon, Kristen Cannon, Cathleen Fishel, Stephanie Wilcox, Alexis Rosales, Faith Majors, Bethany Buchanan, Susan and Steve Beatte, Larry Doty, Vanessa and Chuck Ames, Dana Barton and Robert Clay, Rita Shuma, Jennifer Wisler, Dr. Rukmini Rednam, Dr. Victoria Chang, Dr. Danielle Antosh, Katie Tsuru, and Dr. Kathy Nguyen.

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