Magnolia Homes Designer to Speak at 4word Gala
Don’t you love when you find out about a nonprofit that speaks to your heart?
The other day I was invited to a patron party and the stunning home of Lisa and Clay Cooley to celebrate the upcoming 4word Gala. Now, if you haven’t heard about 4word before, it’s a faith-based community that empowers and inspires women in the workplace through personal connection and mentoring. To help the crowd of about 30 woman – and a few men – get to know each other, founder Diane Paddison asked the group to raise their hands if they were pet lovers, enjoyed sports, liked to have good conversations over a better glass of wine, and finally if they had Christian women in their lives to connect with.
Funny enough, the last question is something my sister and I have been talking about for the previous year.
Paddison then went on to explain a few reasons why she created her ministry, and all of her reasons hit every check mark box my sister and I were looking to fill: Do you sometimes feel alone at church? (check); are you unsure of what to do with your leadership skills? (check); Do you struggle with confidence? (check, check, check).
This March, empowering women like Magnolia Farms lead designer Laura Tucker and Susan Packard, Co-Founder and former COO of HGTV, will speak at the third annual 4word Gala Divine Design.
Proceeds from the March 2 gala will benefit 4word, a faith-based community which empowers and inspires women in the workplace through personal connection and mentoring.
Those of us who attended the patron party got to enjoy an intimate conversation with Tucker, who was lead designer and project manager of renovations for all five seasons of Fixer Upper with Joanna Gaines and was the design lead on Magnolia Bakery and Magnolia Table.
Tucker shared with the group about how she found herself through design, specifically restoration.
While a student at Baylor, Tucker said she struggled to find peace with a major. She started as a vocal major and then moved to pre-dentistry because “she liked teeth,” but “it only lasted for a year.” There was a side of her, she said, that was artistic, liked colors, and was good with numbers. For the first time in her life, Tucker, who just wanted to obey God’s calling on her, realized he also was giving her choices.
“While the easier path would be, ‘what do you want me to do,'” she said God drew out of her what she wanted to do, which was liberating.
Working on Fixer Upper, Tucker said she was able to hone into her passion for restoration – a passion she said began with her grandmother who taught her how to “cherish things that were old and broken.” But, she said her heart for it really blossomed with her relationship with Jesus and seeing the parallels between fixing up and old and broken house and scripture.
“Rebuilding something from ruins tugs on my heartstrings because it’s what we want, (as people), to be whole,” she said.
Debbie Dillon will chair the event, and Ka Cotter, Dorthy Miller Shore, and Dr. Kathryn Waldrep will serve as honorary chairs.
The gala will be held March 2 at the Dallas Renaissance Hotel. Tickets start at $500 and are available by clicking here.
