Out & About: Dallas Arboretum’s Great Contributors Award Dinner

The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden honored Laura Bush and Kay Bailey Hutchison during its Great Contributors Awards dinner on Nov. 15.

The Great Contributor Award celebrates those who have significantly impacted the state, country, and world. Funds raised from the dinner help the Dallas Arboretum fund field trips for 100,000 school-age children and underwrite 25,000 tickets to provide access to those unable to pay.

Honorary co-chairs Marilyn and Ben Weber introduced Bush and Hutchison.

“I am thrilled to be here to accept the Dallas Arboretum’s Great Contributor Award because, as I’m sure many of you know, I am an outdoor enthusiast,” Bush said. The former first lady is a lifelong conservationist and remains committed to issues of global concern through her work at the George W. Bush Institute. 

Hutchison represented Texas as a U.S. senator and served three years as U.S. ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). 

“Kay, thank you for your many contributions that have brought positive change and strength in leadership to our country,” Marilyn Weber said.