Dallas Baptist University Leadership Gala

DBU Leadership Gala

2024 date to be announced shortly! 
Chantilly Ballroom, Hilton Anatole Hotel
7:00 p.m. - Dinner and Program
6:00 p.m. - General Reception

Since 1898, DBU has produced servant leaders whose heart is to transform the world and strengthen their communities. To that end, DBU seeks to honor those whose lives reflect the values that the University holds dear. Established in 1988, the annual DBU Leadership Gala seeks to honor individuals who use their God-given talents and abilities to excel in their chosen field of work and whose lives are testimonies of achievements in free enterprise and service to the community through the Russell H. Perry Free Enterprise Award and the Tom Landry Leadership Award.

Please consider becoming a sponsor of this year’s DBU Leadership Gala in order to provide scholarship funds to DBU students as they pursue Christ-centered quality higher education.

For questions regarding the event, please contact Bobby Soto at bobby@dbu.edu or (214) 333-6894.

2023 Honorees

Jim and Sally Nation
Russell H. Perry Free Enterprise Award

We were honored to award Jim and Sally Nation with the 2023 Russell H. Perry Free Enterprise Award. As the founders of the Nation Foundation, Jim and Sally help provide grants to institutions of higher education and civic organizations. Sally is an educator at heart and recognizes the importance and role that an education holds in a child’s life, and the Nation's philanthropic endeavors highlight this very sentiment. Jim has served in the engineering and manufacturing sector throughout his career, and currently serves as Chairman of the Board of First Co., a leader and innovator in the HVAC industry. The Nations are also long-standing friends of DBU, supporting the mission and vision through their generosity and influence. Passionate about developing servant leaders, Jim and Sally helped establish Nation Hall, which houses the Gary Cook School of Leadership at DBU. Jim and Sally have also served on the DBU Board of Trustees, and Sally has previously served as president of the DBU Women's Auxiliary Board. The Nations have three adult children and reside in Dallas.

Bob Lilly
Tom Landry Leadership Award

Bob Lilly, affectionately known by many as "Mr. Cowboy," is a beloved Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman with a 14-year career on America's team. In 1980, Lilly was the first Dallas Cowboy to be inducted into the Professional Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Sporting News also named Lilly as number 10 of the 100 greatest NFL players. The Lillys came to admire the Christ-centered mission of DBU when their granddaughter enrolled as an undergraduate student, and they have become dear friends of the University. The Lillys have four adult children and reside in the Dallas area. Having been a player under Coach Tom Landry himself, we were pleased to present Bob Lilly with the 2023 Tom Landry Leadership Award.

Choir singing and American flags in the background with title "Sponsorship Levels" over the picture

Sponsorship Levels

Underwriter

$100,000

  • Two (2) tables of eight (8) with Head Table seating at the 2023 DBU Leadership Gala
  • Full-page ad and prominent recognition in the dinner program
  • Eight (8) tickets to the VIP reception before dinner program
  • Complimentary valet parking for all guests
  • Special Sponsorship gift

Purchase Table

Leadership

$50,000

  • Two (2) tables of eight (8) with VIP seating at the 2023 DBU Leadership Gala
  • Half-page ad and priority recognition in the dinner program
  • Eight (8) tickets to the VIP reception before dinner program
  • Complimentary valet parking for all guests
  • Special Sponsorship gift

Benefactor

$25,000

  • Two (2) tables of eight (8) with Superior seating at the 2023 DBU Leadership Gala
  • Quarter-page ad and special recognition in the dinner program
  • Six (6) tickets to the VIP reception before dinner program
  • Complimentary valet parking for all guests
  • Special Sponsorship gift

Freedom Council

$10,000

  • Two (2) tables of eight (8) with Priority seating at the 2023 DBU Leadership Gala
  • Name listed in the dinner program
  • Six (6) tickets to the VIP reception before dinner program
  • Complimentary valet parking for all guests
  • Special Sponsorship gift

Enterprise Council

$5,000

  • One (1) table of eight (8) with Preferred seating at the 2023 DBU Leadership Gala
  • Name listed in the dinner program
  • Four (4) tickets to the VIP reception before dinner program
  • Complimentary valet parking for all guests
  • Special Sponsorship gift

Chairman's Board

$2,500

  • One (1) table of eight (8) with Preferred seating at the 2023 DBU Leadership Gala
  • Name listed in the dinner program
  • Two (2) tickets to the VIP reception before dinner program
  • Complimentary valet parking for all guests
  • Special Sponsorship gift

President's Cabinet

$1,500

  • One (1) table of eight (8) with Select seating at the 2023 DBU Leadership Gala
  • Name listed in the dinner program
  • Two (2) tickets to the VIP reception before dinner program
  • Complimentary valet parking for all guests
  • Special Sponsorship gift

Previous Tom Landry Leadership Award Recipients

2007-2023

2023 Bob Lilly
2022 Dr. David B. Walls
2019 Bill and Bobbie Pinson
2018 David Moon
2017 Paul and Charla Vinyard
2016 Jim Denison
2015 William B. Tolar
2014 Gil Stricklin
2013 Tillie Burgin
2012 Fred Moses
2011 Wayne Stevenson
2010 Jeff Warren
2009 Mike Simpson
2008 Jack Graham
2007 Sam Johnson

Previous Russell H. Perry Award Recipients

1988-2023

2023 Jim and Sally Nation
2022 Dr. David B. Walls
2021 Clark Hunt
2020 C.T. “Sparkey” and Merrie Beckham
2019 Sam Johnson
2018 Raymond Harris
2017 Orville C. Rogers
2016 Joel Allison
2015 Lee Roy and Tandy Mitchell
2014 Don Hodges
2013 Bob Buford
2012 Vester Hughes
2011 Norm Miller
2010 Wright L. Lassiter, Jr.
2009 Tom Leppert
2008 Drayton McLane, Jr.
2007 Andy and Joan Horner
2006 David A. Dean
2005 Pete Schenkel
2004 Noble Hurley (posthumously)
2003 The Weir Furniture Family
2002 George A. Shafer
2001 Mary C. Crowley (posthumously)
2000 Erle Nye
1999 Ross Perot, Jr.
1998 Jim L. Turner
1997 Rodger Meier
1996 W. Forrest Smith
1995 Lonnie ‘Bo’ Pilgrim
1994 Bob Minyard, Liz Minyard, Gretchen Minyard Williams, and J.L. Sonny Williams
1993 Boone Powell, Sr. and Boone Powell, Jr.
1992 Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper
1991 Tom Landry
1990 Maurice and Ebby Halliday Acers
1989 Trammell Crow
1988 John M. Stemmons, Sr.