It was Carol Farkas’ 45th birthday, but National Jewish Medical and Research Center got the present – $450,000 to be used for lupus research.
Farkas and her husband, Joel, were among the seven community leaders serving as grand marshals for the Beaux Arts Ball, and made the donation in honor of the help she received following her own diagnosis with the autoimmune disease for which there is no cure. The lupus research conducted at National Jewish, Carol Farkas said, “Brings us closer to better treatments … and hopefully a cure.” Her lupus has been in remission for the past four years.
Their gift was a surprise to all, including Dr. Michael Salem, who succeeds Dr. Lynn Taussig as the president and chief executive of National Jewish. Salem, who has been on the job for about a month, found out about it during the two-hour social that preceded dinner at the new Hyatt Regency Convention Center.
“It’s an extraordinary gift, something that is truly breathtaking and caught all of us by surprise,” Salem said.
It’s also the second major example of the couple’s generosity in recent months. At the ball’s kickoff party, the couple set the pace for grand marshal giving by donating $50,000 to the cause. Joel Farkas, whose JF Companies has numerous real estate and water resource holdings, is a member of the National Jewish board.
Other grand marshals for the ninth Beaux Arts Ball: Rendezvous in Rio were Larry and Julie Gelfond, Megan and Mariner Kemper, and Dick Saunders. Chairmen were John Beeble, K.C. Gallagher, Dr. Robert London and Don Provost. Their gifts, coupled with ticket sales, sponsorships and a two-item live auction, brought the total amount raised to $1.15 million.
Tropical foliage, feathers and bright colors were hallmarks of the evening. Before dinner the 1,400 guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres (including jumbo shrimp served with spicy cocktail sauce in shot glasses) and a preview of the Carnaval-style entertainment that LeClique would offer once the formal program concluded.
David Engleberg, chairman of the National Jewish board, and his wife, Charlene, moved through the crowd, welcoming such supporters as John and Anna Sie with their friends Martha Liao and Hao Jiang Tian; Bruce and Nancy Deifik; Jim and Katie Berenbaum; Howard and Blanca Lerman; Forest City Stapleton exec Landri Taylor and his wife, Gloria; and Bette Matkowski, president of Johnson & Wales University’s Denver campus.
Others enjoying this armchair visit to Rio were Barry and Gay Curtiss-Lusher, Janet and attorney Stuart Kritzer, and Scott Lynn and Natalie Rekstad-Lynn.
Society editor Joanne Davidson can be reached at 303-809-1314 or jmdpost@aol.com.
