Dirk and Jessica Nowitzki
If Episcopal School of Dallas or The Hockaday School staffers noticed that their lunchroom were a bit scant of students on Tuesday, April 25, they were right. The lasses were at the Hilton Anatole’s Imperial Ballroom with their parents’ permission.
The occasion was Jonathan’s Place’s “A Chance To Soar Luncheon.” Now, normally it might be considered a grown-up event, but this one had two mega-athletes — Olympian God Medalist/former foster child Simone Biles on stage and Maverick main man Dirk Nowitzki as one of the day’s award recipient.
As mom Tracy Lange surmised, a couple of the moms hosted a table for their girl and others quickly followed suit filling the ballroom with 700.
Tracy Lange, Livia Lange, Amelia Schoellkopf, Olivia Hohmann, Mary Ellen Schoellkopf, Kate Eastin and Monica Eastin
Sydney Hoyl and Kristi Hoyl
While some might question pulling the young ladies out of school, others reasoned that in addition to seeing and/or seeing world-class role models, the girls had the opportunity to be part of a grownup fundraising experience.
Some of the young luncheoners like Livia Lange, Amelia Schoellkopf, Olivia Hohmann, Mary Ellen Schoellkopf, Kate Eastin and Caroline Bagley were dressed to the nines. Too bad they’re too young for 10 best Dressed. Others like Sydney Hoyl opted to stay in their school uniforms.
Simone Biles and Ron Biles
The photo opp for guests and Simone was a bit ramble scramble due to Simone’s late arrival. She had been delayed due to an interview in another area of the hotel with KXAS/emcee Meredith Land.
Walked to the front of the room with her father, Ron Biles, the Simone’s 4’9” size seemed even more so standing next to 7’0” Dirk. Still her smile was as big as ever despite having taken a flight from Los Angeles following her appearance on “Dancing With The Stars” the night before.
Even before folks like Jan and Trevor Rees-Jones, Jenny and Trevor Rees-Jones III, Stacey Walker, Jessica Nowitzki, Lydia Novakov, Tracy Rathbun, Monica Eastin and Pam Busbee, took their seats, the raffle tickets were sold out.
Pam Busbee
Tracy Rathbun
Stacey Walker and Bryan Dunagan
Following the welcome by Luncheon Co-Chairs Julie Bagley and Rachel Stephens, the invocation by Highland Park Presbyterian Church Senior Pastor Bryan Dunagan and a luncheon of pecan crusted chicken breast salad, the following awards were presented:
- Award of Compassion to Dirk Nowitzki
- Award of Excellence to Jan and Trevor Rees-Jones
- Award of Service to Gary Borofsky representing Dillard’s
Jonathon’s Place’s CEO Allicia Graham Frye told the group that last year 277 children were handled by Jonathan’s Place. She finished her remarks saying, “My wish is that every child that comes across my path would feel loved.”
Allicia Graham Frye and Jan and Trevor Rees-Jones
It should be noted that unlike the Chick Lit Luncheon, the audience was silent during the award presentation and Allicia’s remarks.
It was then time for Simone to chat with Meredith Land on stage. The under current in the room seemed to race as if Santa had just popped down the chimney. For those close to the stage, they got a pretty good look at the twosome. However, the quality of the lighting and video created shadows making the on-screen presentation challenging.
Simone Biles
Still, Simone did not disappoint with such revelations:
- “I was just a crazy kid.”
- She started gymnastics at the age of six and loved it immediately.
- Her routine was an hour and half of conditioning, going to school and returning to the gym for her real workout. Such a regime required more than dedication, it demanded sacrifice like, “I’ve never been to a prom. I cried a lot. Sasha (___, her DWTS partners) was the first guy that she had really danced with and “he was 20 years old.”
- Regrets — “I shouldn’t say that I do because of all of the accomplishments that I have from it. It’s all worked very well.”
- Bullying — “Rise above it and use it as a motivation to do anything that you want to do and to always prove them wrong.”
- Confidence — “I have very down-to-earth parents. I have amazing friends. My brothers, as well, are supporting me. It’s kind of easy to do that. But at times it gets hard because I want to be a normal kid and do other things. At the end of the day it’s my goal that I want.”
- Olympics — “I actually didn’t really want to go to the Olympics when I was younger. I said I did because every little girl wanted to, so I would say, ‘I want to go to the Olympics.’ At a time in my career I knew I could be the best and it scared me so much that I would sometime sabotage my gymnastics. I knew I had the potential, but I didn’t want all that attention on me. It scared me so much. So I would do things on purpose. But I got out of it…. In February 2016 I had a really big breakdown. I had been at the top for three years and I thought this is my really big year, but what if I get hurt. And I started thinking of all these things, so I was too scared to even tumble. I thought if I land wrong, there goes my Olympic game. I would go to the bar and start bawling. It happened for two weeks. I cried a lot. I would go to practice and my coach would be like, ‘Just go home.’ My Dad told me to call my sports psychologist and I said, ‘No, I just want to cry.’ And my dad called him. He came into my room and handed the phone to me and I usually don’t cry in front of him or really anybody, and I just started bawling my eyes out — ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’m not going to make the team. Blah, blah, blah.’ He (the sports psychologist) said, ‘Simone, what was the first thing I said to you when you came into my office?’ We chatted about it.”
- Sports Psychologist — “For three years your parents, your coaches, your mentors, it’s good to have someone that knows your sport but it helps that it’s not the same person over and over again.”
- Whom did she not want to disappoint — “I didn’t want to let down America because they had such big goals for me. They expected me to get five gold medals and I only walked out with four, so I felt like I let them down a little bit.” Afterwards she was asked in an interview about how badly she felt getting a bronze instead of a gold, her response was, “I’m sorry if that was your goal. I’m sorry if you guys had to backspace on your typewriter. I’m pretty happy. This was my first Olympics and I’m 19 years old and ma walking out of here with five medals. My goal was to make the finals. Whatever happens happens. I came out with four golds and one bronze and pretty proud of myself. I’m sorry if I disappointed you because they already crowned me with five gold medals. I think they (the interviewer) was trying to put it on me, so that’s what hurt a little bit.”
- On the podium — “You feel like you’re a princess up there. It never feels real. I would always look at my parents. They would be bawling and I would then start tearing up. I’m an ugly crier.”
- Post Olympics — “I haven’t worked out since the Olympics. It is my year off, so that is why I chose ‘Dancing With The Stars.’ I’m going on a vacations with my family this summer. One is Hawaii and the other is Belize… I eat ice cream every chance I get.”
- 2020 — “I’m going to train for the 2020 Olympics.”
- What makes Texas special — “It’s the people. I’m in LA right now and it’s very different. I think it’s the southerness.”
- What she misses — “I miss my bed and my dogs. I cook for my dogs. They’re spoiled little things. They have monogrammed beds. They’re not little. They’re German Shepherds. We have three.”
- First Date — “It was like low key. I had never been on a date before or had a boyfriend. So, it’s all new. We just went to get frozen yogurt. It was a little scary. I’ve trained all my life to go to the Olympics, not to go on a date.”
- The future — “I think I want to do something with sports management.”
- Foster care — “[Being a foster parent] really does change a child’s life. It does give them a home, love. A lot of them age out at the age of 18 and that makes me sad. I was very fortunate for my situation. It really does make difference in the kids’ eyes.”
- She recalled that before being rescued from her birth mother, there were days when she ate her cereal with white.
- She felt that she would not win “Dancing With The Stars.”
At the end of the conversation, Simone looked out into the audience with each member holding a card reading “10.”
She was then off to Jonathan’s Place to visit with children waiting for a foster parent.