Jewel Charity Ball Celebrates 70 Years With An Epic Disco — Diana Ross Puts on a Show in Fort Worth

The Jewel Charity Ball welcomed nearly 1,600 guests to relive the 1970s at its annual event on Saturday, March 2. The celebration of the ball’s 70-year legacy of giving brought out party-goers and supports in funky, sparkly style. The party included plenty of peace, love, and disco by none other than the diva herself – Diana Ross.

Upon entrance to the Amon G. Carter Jr. Exhibits Hall at Will Rogers Memorial Center were silver sequined dancers beneath a canopy of disco balls. The stage for this groovy disco club reimagining was set.

“Jewel Charity President, Kathy Sneed and ball chairs Michelle Miles, Laura Rooker, Sandra Tuomey, and Tara Warren enlisted Melanie Tatum Events to bring their vision to life,” according to a release. “The ball is a long-standing Fort Worth tradition in celebration of Angel donors who generously support the patients at Cook Children’s.”

Jewel Charity has raised more than $81 million in support of the patients at Cook Children’s throughout its first 70 years.

Guests perused the wide array of jewelry on display by its official jeweler, Neiman Marcus, who provided a one-of-a-kind shopping experience. Steeplechase and Assembly Debutantes modeled the jewelry during the cocktail hour, and Neiman Marcus donated a portion of sales to Jewel Charity to support Cook Children’s.

Gold Lamé, Roller Skates, and Disco Queens

This year’s seventies theme was reinforced by a group of roller skaters who moved to the music of an Elton John impersonator stationed at the piano. Following the cocktail hour, guests moved into the ballroom for a spectacular plated dinner by Wolfgang Puck Catering and were serenaded by electric strings from Q The Band, with multiple violinists stationed throughout the hall, jamming to the hits from decades gone by. It was a rousing “opening act.”

Disco icon Diana Ross took fans on a tour of her greatest hits, as well as introducing her daughter Rhonda Ross who joined her on-stage to perform their duet Count On Me from Diana Ross’ Grammy-nominated album, THANK YOU. A song she said Rhonda wrote for her.

Dressed in red from head to toe, Ross (who turns 80 on March 26) said she was planning to turn that 8 on its side and make it into an infinity symbol. She made Jewel Charity guests into believers that anything is possible. Ross also told fans that she was thrilled to be at the event because children’s causes are so dear to her.