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Presented by

Saturday, April 6th 2024

The annual gala is the Center’s largest fundraiser, and we are thrilled to invite you to GALA 2024! Join us on Saturday, April 6, 2024, for a nostalgically modern evening as we eclipse fundraising records in support of children affected by abuse and neglect. Enjoy delicious food, live entertainment, and much more! Don’t miss this premier Collin County event!

Event Details

Colorful Cocktail Attire

6:00pm | Registration Opens, Cocktail Reception
7:30pm | Program Begins
9:30pm | Electric Avenue – the 80s MTV Experience
11:30 | See you next year!

Honorary Chairs

David and Carolyn Brooks

David Brooks is Chairman, CEO & Founder of Independent Financial. The company has grown rapidly and is now a publicly traded regional banking company headquartered in McKinney, Texas, with 94 banking centers across Texas and Colorado.

Carolyn Brooks is very active and involved in educational opportunities for young people. She is a Board Member and most recently Chair of the 30th Anniversary Gala for the McKinney Education Foundation. Carolyn and David have been married for over 36 years and have two children and enjoy time with friends, family, and especially their twin grandsons. They have a shared interest in everything outdoors with hobbies including running, cycling, skiing, yoga, mountain climbing (DAVID ONLY!), reading, and traveling.

David and Carolyn believe in and have been extensively involved in community leadership over the years – including the McKinney Independent School District, McKinney City Council, McKinney Economic Development Board, the McKinney Chamber of Commerce Board and have supported the important work of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Collin County since its inception.

Renaissance Dallas at Plano Legacy West

We are excited to announce a new location for Gala 2024 – the beautiful Renaissance Dallas at Plano Legacy West!

To book your stay for the evening of April 6th under our group rate, please click the link below or call 844.781.7383 and reference Children’s Advocacy Center of Collin County Gala, Market Code CCC.

MUST BE BOOKED BY: Saturday, March 23, 2024

Tickets and Sponsorships

Gala tickets and sponsorships are limited. If you are interested in purchasing tickets or sponsorships, please contact the Development Team at Development1@caccollincounty.org

Lexus Vehicle Raffle

The DFW Lexus Dealers, a longtime partner of the Center’s, have once again donated a brand-new Lexus for the Gala Lexus Vehicle Raffle. This amazing donation allows us to raise $137,500 with 100% of the profits going toward critical services for children and families affected by child abuse in our community.

By purchasing a vehicle raffle ticket for $50, you have a 1 in 2,750 chance of winning an all-new Lexus TX!

Our lucky winner will be drawn at Gala 2024.

Keynote Speaker

Kevin McNeil, Victim Advocate, Speaker, Retired, Detective, Author

Kevin McNeil is a Transformational Speaker, Victim Advocate, author, and CEO of the Twelve Project, an organization that educates the world on the effects of trauma and abuse on individuals, families, and communities. Kevin’s passion is to help others heal from the effects of trauma and abuse. He is a renowned speaker who shares lessons from his own life experiences that transform, motivate, and inspire an individual’s mindset and potential.

Kevin retired from the DeKalb County Police Department of Georgia after 20 years of service. He served eight years as a Police Officer, and twelve years as a Special Victims Unit Detective. His training and attention to detail helped him solve several high-profile serial rape cases in the Atlanta area. Kevin’s background coupled with his extensive research on trauma and the effects of abuse, defines and differentiates his message. He travels internationally speaking on topics relevant to Child Advocacy Centers, Police Departments, Department of Family and Children Services, District Attorney’s Offices, athletic organizations, schools and universities, parents, and foster parents, as well as community members. Kevin has appeared on numerous radio, television, and podcast programs; including TV One’s crime investigative series ‘Fatal Attraction’ and has been a guest on Jim Clemente’s podcast ‘Best Case, Worst Case,’ along with being featured in several magazine articles.

Kevin has spoken at numerous Child Advocacy Centers across the United States. He has spoken at events sponsored by Darkness to Light, as well as being featured in the 2023 Darkness to Light Stewards of Children training video. He has delivered a keynote presentation and workshop for the Beau Biden Foundation National Conference to Protect America’s Children, International Child Symposium on Child Abuse in Huntsville, Alabama; he’s delivered a plenary presentation and workshops at the San Diego International Conference on Child and Family Maltreatment in San Diego, California; and in 2019, he even traveled to Bermuda to help train law enforcement surrounding child abuse and child sexual assault.

Kevin’s mission is to “motivate change in the world through trauma and abuse education,” and his vision is to “create a better tomorrow for today’s children.”

Entertainment

Electric Avenue – The 80s MTV Experience

What started as a one-off party gig has turned into a decade-long run, playing 100+ live concerts each year across the US and abroad. An Electric Avenue show is a high-energy space that reminds people of a time when they came home from school, put a record on, and listened with open ears and an open heart; conjuring first dates, first cars, prom nights, weekend movies, and meeting friends at the mall, while finding a sense of fashion and an identity all their own. At an EA show, 80’s music is as alive and well today as it has ever been.

If authenticity is your thing, Electric Avenue meticulously and painstakingly recreates every nuance and flavor of your favorite 80’s songs. Delving into their personal stash of vintage synthesizers and rare signal processors, an Electric Avenue show is a true labor of love. In fact, Electric Avenue’s sound is so close to that of the original artists that in 2019 Warner Music issued a cease-and-desist for using original artists recordings on their social channels. After hearing the complete live recording of Electric Avenue’s performance, Warner Music issued an apology to the band.

Electric Avenue has sailed the high seas with the The Walking Dead Cast, Kid Rock, The Impractical Jokers, Joey Fatone, and Pitbull. In 2019, EA was hand-picked and flown to Asbury Park, NJ to provide the soundtrack for the red carpet launch of the Bruce Springsteen, Gurinder Chadha (Bend it Like Beckham), New Line Entertainment 80’s-centric film, Blinded By The Light. They have had the privilege of being direct support for 80’s legend Pat Benatar, and have been joined on stage by, among others, members of Toto, Player, Talk Talk, and Little River Band.

As artists, the musicians in Electric Avenue have had a hand in the sale of over 15 million albums worldwide. If namedropping is your thing, you may have seen or heard these guys with: Lionel Richie, Paul Simon, Idina Menzel, Daniel Lanois (producer for U2, Peter Gabriel), Brian Blade, Emmy Lou Harris, B-52s, Little River Band, Michael Malarkey (Vampire Diaries), Zac Brown Band, Player, RENT (our singer played Roger Davis from 2001-2004), Paula Cole, Tracy Chapman, Bobby Kimball (Toto) Kristian Bush (Sugarland), Shanice, Edwin McCain, Robbie Dupree, Rita Wilson, Lindsay Ell, Boston, Collective Soul, Mother’s Finest, Sister Hazel, Yanni, Boyz II Men, and more.

Every sound. Every nuance. Every time.

Our Generous Sponsors

Presenting Sponsor

Exclusive Automotive Partner

$50,000

Carolyn & Mark Speese

$25,000

Carolyn & David Brooks

$15,000

Cathy & Richard Riccardi

 

$10,000

Hiya & Dave Hoffman, Sydney & Carson Pope
Bernstein Private Wealth Management | DADS Advisory Fund

 

$5,000

Centurion American Development | CAC Specialty
Insight Wealth Partners | DevSol Holdings | Blue Cross Blue Shield
Marsh & McLennan Agency | Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – McKinney | Children’s Health
Encore Wire | Mercer Advisors | Texas Instruments | Love Life Foundation | Legacy Dermatology
Aaron & Monica Messick | Unicom Engineering | Lockton | Spring Valley Construction
Emerson | Jack Black | NexPoint

$3,000

Miguel & Wendy Aguirre | Quilling, Selander, Lownds, Winslett & Moser, P.C.
Martha Grimm & John Seiver | Kristin & Ross Rodefeld | Liz & Randy Sweney | Medical City McKinney
Cal & Krista Parsons | First United Bank | Collin County District Attorney’s Office | The Christie Cannon Team
Claudine & Ed Record | Legacy Dermatology | Borserine Law | EY |  Talent 101, Inc. 
Cigna | LAM Technology | Park Place Lexus | DFW Sewell | Ashley Denison
Tito’s Handmade Vodka | Marsha Clark and Associates | MetLife