My mother, Kathy Gray, has always had a heart for service. As a child, I watched her go to committee meetings mid-week, complete endless party planning tasks and give up free time to her cause, the American Heart Association. She was determined to spread the message that heart disease is the number one killer of women in the United States. She served as leadership in the Birmingham Heart Guild working her way up from active member and eventually serving as Heart Ball President.
Each year, I anticipated opening up the grand invitation to the Heart Ball and watching my mother pick out her gown. I even got to tag along with my dates as I got older. During my senior year of high school I was selected to serve as a Birmingham Heart Guild Sweetheart. This program, developed in part by my mom, included personal development classes and volunteer hours working with the guild and visiting heart patients at Children’s Hospital.
My positive experience as a Sweetheart helped guide our decision to develop a similar mentorship program for A Model Patient called the Dallas SOCIAL Club. We have a strong female-led SOCIAL Committee comprised of health, beauty, style and culture experts.
SOCIAL Club stands Sisterhood of Confident Independent Ambitious Leaders.
It’s a leadership club for Dallas area high school girls aged 9th-12th grades that blends philanthropy and personal development through fun, social experiences. Members and Mentors will meet twice monthly; the commitment level is small, but the impact has great potential. I hope to empower the next generation of young ladies to develop a heart for service too. We all have a cause. Some causes we choose and sometimes the cause chooses us. The point is finding a passionate way to give back to your community, without the expectation of getting anything back in return. We know that serving others is more than civic duty, it can provide a healthy life balance and perspective.
We are now accepting applications for Dallas SOCIAL Club HERE. Our first recruitment event is October 24th in Dallas.