Silver Screen event

Cowtown Ball rolls out red carpet for Western-chic gala with Kaitlin Butts

The 2026 Cowtown Ball rode into Simmons Bank Pavilion at Dickies Arena for a night of "Spurs, Stetsons and the Silver Screen" on Friday, September 25.

The 33rd edition of the gala (always one of the most-anticipated of fall in Fort Worth) brought out 400 revelers dressed in their Western-chic finest to raise vital funds for the American Cancer Society. The event was led by co-chairs Cortney Craft and Wendy Wright, with actress Sainty Nelson and chef Jon Bonnell serving as "cure champion" ambassadors for the organization.

Excited ball guests navigated through a colorful crowd arriving at the same time for a Weird Al concert at Dickies Arena and made their way down a red carpet to the underground pavilion area.

At a cocktail reception, they could pose at photo booths and bid on an impressive assortment of silent auction items - all while sipping a pink-hued signature cocktail, the Cowtown Starlet, made with local La Pulga Blanco Tequila, prickly pear syrup, fresh lime juice, sparkling prosecco, and shimmery edible glitter.

Dinner inside the ballroom - catered by Dickies Arena - took a different approach than that of most galas: Instead of a plated dinner or buffet, food stations were set up around the room. Guests picked up small jars, crocks, and plates and carried them back to the open-seating tables to eat, tapas-style. Two of the perks of a VIP ticket were a plated meal and an assigned seat.

The food-station menu included handcrafted Mediterranean tacos, bourbon glazed beef meatballs, vegetarian chorizo paella, wild mushroom ragout, green chile cheddar grits cup, smoked short rib jars, warm spiced doughnut holes, and pumpkin cheesecake mousse shooters. A couple of bars on either end of the venue ensured no one went thirsty.

Photo by Canon Elizabeth Photography

"Cure Champion" chef Jon Bonnell with Melinda Bonnell.

Mistress of ceremonies, CBS 11's Madison Sawyer, along with event chairs Craft and Wright, welcomed guests and underscored the importance of the evening to the ACS's mission to fight cancer in the greater Fort Worth community.

A rousing game of "Heads or Tails" got most of the room on its feet. Then a live auction of luxury trips and experiences had the crowd cheering. Paddles flew fast and furiously around the room, and bids soared into the tens of thousands.

The biggest item of the auction (and the emotional high point of the night) came from beloved Fort Worth chef Jon Bonnell, who auctioned off a luxury dinner experience. It sold for $20,000 and then two more sold, bringing in an astounding $60,000 altogether. Sharing about his own recent cancer battle, Bonnell took the opportunity to advocate for HPV vaccines, which received enthusiastic reception from the audience.

Returning for a second year as a passionate cure champion, Fort Worth resident, award-winning actress, and skin cancer survivor Sainty Nelsen encouraged the crowd to give generously in a "paddle raise" initiative.

After the fundraising, it was time for the fun: Rising country star Kaitlin Butts and her band (including an overall-clad fiddle player who caught the ladies' attention) took the stage as the featured entertainer. She's no stranger to Fort Worth. Butts recently opened for superstar Ella Langley at Dickies Arena and will be playing a show at Billy Bob's Texas on December 18 in support of her album Hello, Honky Tonk, set for release on October 30.

She got the crowd dancing and singing along to a set list that included “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down),” “Roadrunner,” “Never Really Mine,” "Any Man of Mine," and as a special treat on "9-to-5 Day" (September 25), her rendition of the late, great Dolly Parton's “9 to 5.”

Spotted in the crowd, enjoying the evening, were Scott Redfearn, Amy Redfearn, Alana Latiolais, Tim Latiolais, Brian Dickerson, Melissa Howard, Joseph Romero, Jon Bonnell, Melinda Bonnell, Randy Brown, Leah Vahrenkamp-Brown, Rebecca Kirkman, Kathleen Alexander, Walter Stucker, Dan Jones, Molly Jones, Ronda Stucker, Paul Dorman, Robin Froeschke, Preston Sawyer, Sarah Wallace, Rick Maxey, Gary Blake, Amber Alford, Brandon Alford, Chris Schatz, Justin Strange, Erin Strange, Carmen Brichetto, and hundreds more patrons and supporters.

In total, the 2026 Cowtown Ball raised $850,000 - $20,000 more than this year's goal, the event chairs said.

For more than three decades, the Cowtown Ball has brought the Fort Worth community together to support those facing cancer. The event has raised more than $10 million to date for cancer research and essential patient programs and services.

Proceeds help fund programs such as the American Cancer Society Gene and Jerry Jones Family Hope Lodge, which offers free lodging to cancer patients and caregivers who must travel for treatment, as well as transportation assistance to help patients get to and from appointments.

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Birthday Bash

Opal Lee spends 100th birthday at monumental Fort Worth celebrations

Photo courtesy of Opal Lee

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Opal Lee, the lifelong Texan and a driving force in making Juneteenth a federal holiday, spent her 100th birthday on Wednesday, October 7, at the center of celebrations in her hometown that included a visit from former first lady Michelle Obama.

Lee attended the groundbreaking for a Fort Worth a museum dedicated to telling the history of Juneteenth, the holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the U.S, and was later joined at an evening event headlined by Obama. The planned 50,000-square-foot National Juneteenth Museum, located in a historically Black neighborhood, is projected to open in 2029.

Lee, widely known as the “grandmother of Juneteenth,” wore a flower lei and was surrounded by family and friends while expressing happiness and gratitude after the announcement of a $3 million donation by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“I’m so happy I could do a holy dance, and these old legs won’t respond, but let me tell you how thankful I am and that this deed won’t go unnoticed,” Lee said.

When then-President Joe Biden in 2021 signed a bill into law making Juneteenth a federal holiday, Lee was by his side.

The holiday marks the day in 1865 when Union soldiers arrived in Galveston at the end of the Civil War with an order declaring the freedom of the enslaved people in Texas. It was about 2 1/2 years after the Emancipation Proclamation freed the enslaved people in the still rebellious states of the Confederacy. Six months later, the ratification of the 13th Amendment permanently ended slavery in the United States.

Lee has been a force in Fort Worth, where she worked for decades as a teacher, counselor, and community activist.

She has said she has cherished childhood memories of celebrating Juneteenth with food, music, and games, and as an adult, she was involved in planning the celebration in Fort Worth.

“Long before there were historic walks, cameras, books, and well-deserved national acclaim, my childhood memories are filled with you making sure that Fort Worth remembered,” U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee H. Toliver said at the event.

She told Lee that she remembered her planning community events, parades, and festivals.

“You always reminded us that history is not something you leave behind, it’s something you actively protect,” Toliver said.

The future site of the museum is not far from the home that was built for Lee a couple of years ago on the same tree-lined corner lot that her family had been driven from by a racist mob when she was a young girl.

Lee was 12 when, on Juneteenth in 1939, a white mob of hundreds descended on her Black family’s home, days after they moved into a white neighborhood. The mob smashed windows and furniture, according to newspaper reports from the time.

Jarred Howard, the museum’s CEO, was among those who honored Lee on Wednesday.

“It was important for us to do this on this date because everything we’ve done for the last several years, everything we continue to do, is built around the spirit of the venerable Miss Opal Lee,” he said.

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