Society / The Seen

Planned Parenthood Celebrates Roe v. Wade Anniversary with Record-Setting Lunch: Attorney Activist Recognized for 30 Years of Service

BY // 02.14.18
photography Roswitha Vogler, Photos by Rovo

What: Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast annual Roe v. Wade luncheon

Where: The Marriott Marquis

PC Moment: It was a victory for women’s access to comprehensive reproductive health care and sexual education when more than 1,700 packed the hotel ballroom and raised a record $850,000, that figure rare in the annals of charity luncheons. Leading the day were chairs Sherry and Gerald Merfish and their daughter, Beth Matusoff Merfish, and her husband, Daniel Coleman.

In addition to marking the 45th anniversary of Roe v. Wade,  the luncheon honored attorney, activist and philanthropist Melanie Gray with the inaugural Second Century award. She was recognized for three decades of engagement with PPGC including chairing the organization’s capital campaign that brought in more than $17 million to build PPGC’s state of the art health center.

Last year, the center had close to 75,000 visits for birth control, breast and cervical cancer screenings, HIV tests and screening and treatment for sexually transmitted infections.

“More than 100 years ago Planned Parenthood was founded as a resistance movement.  We must and will continue to resist and persist,” PPGC president and CEO Melaney A. Linton told the gathering. “This movement will continue to thrive through our second century because of people like Melanie Gray.

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“Today we establish the Second Century Award to honor the leaders who stand tall and will march bravely into the next 100 years.”

Strong women was the focus of the luncheon that featured guest speaker Irin Carmon, national reporter for MSNBC and co-author of Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Her talk on the tenacious Supreme Court Justice kept guests entertained and inspired. Special guest was Sarah Weddington, who argued Roe v. Wade in 1973.

Who: Mark Wawro, PPGC board chair Anika Jackson, City Controller Chris Brown and wife Divya, Mayor Pro Tem Ellen Cohen, Licia Green Ellis, former Mayor Annise Parker and Kathy Hubbard, Brett Merfish and Christina Gorczynski, Nancy McGregor Manne, Diana Strassman and Jeff Smisek, Janet Clark, Jay Jones and Terry Wayne Jones, and  PPGC board members Dena Winkler, Necole Irvin and Lauren Reeder. Among the many elected officials were State Senator Sylvia Garcia State Representatives Senfronia Thompson, Carol Alvarado, Alma Allen, Jessica Farrar, Ron Reynolds and Gene Wu.

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