Interfaith Family Services Raises $294,000 at Annual Luncheon

More than 300 people attended the seventh-annual Interfaith Auxiliary Luncheon benefiting Interfaith Family Services, which seeks to empower families in crisis to break the cycle of poverty. 

The April 8 event at Brook Hollow Golf Club raised more than $294,000.

Meredith Land of NBC5 emceed the luncheon again and the Rev. Hannah Buchanan with Highland Park United Methodist Church led the invocation followed by a lunch of Chicken Milanese Salad and desserts of Chilled Lemon Souffles and Chocolate Pot de Crème. 

Land introduced the co-chairs of the Interfaith Auxiliary Luncheon – Elizabeth Shuford Conroy and Lauren Shuford Laughry – who also are cousins, business partners, and longtime supporters. Laughry’s mother, Kathi Shuford, and sister, Adriane Shuford Crosland, served as honorary chairs.

“My mom has been an Interfaith supporter as long as I can remember and started this family tradition for us,” Laughry said. “Adriane co-chaired the luncheon last year with her sisters-in-law, Sandy Crosland and Ali Treaster. When they called and asked us to consider being this year’s chairs, we loved the idea of keeping it in the family.

“Lauren and I sell real estate together. So, as you can imagine, we are particularly aware of how a home is central in a family’s life,” Conroy added. “A home, by definition, is the place you live. It’s four walls and a roof. But really, it’s so much more than that. A home is safety, comfort, security and stability.”

Kimberly Williams, CEO of Interfaith Family Services, spoke about the organization’s mission. 

“Hope can be tough to find for too many families in our region. Just over a third of Dallas families are considered ‘asset poor,’ meaning they don’t have savings to help them through a crisis. These families are incredibly vulnerable to both poverty and homelessness.”

For more information, visit Interfaith Family Services’ website.

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