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Johnson-Bentsen-Richards Dinner at the Four Seasons
Just try silencing 600 or so Democrats. Valiant Andy Brown, Travis County Democratic Party Chairman, tried. That almost insuperable task took the quiet gravitas of Ora Houston, inaugurating the first-ever Johnson-Bentsen-Richards Dinner with a prayer at the Four Seasons Hotel.
Carol Alvarado and Charles Villaseñor
I learned at the end of the evening that this get-together was formerly known as the “Filing Day Dinner” and took place at the even more rambunctious Austin Music Hall. So named for the last date politicians filed for a primary run, it has always brought together the county’s Democratic brigades for a little pre-campaign camaraderie.
Scott McCown, Mary Margaret Farabee and Ellen Richards
Only this year, under Brown’s leadership, the dinner raised $180,000 for coordinated campaign efforts. Just about every face in the crowd looked familiar. And, in case you were wondering, I’d happily report on any similar Republican social convocation, surely more organized than this, as Will Rogers would quip.
Rebecca Bell-Metereau, Yvonne Reynolds and Yolanda Velasquez
State Senator Kirk Watson and. U.S. Congressman Lloyd Doggett gave bookend speeches, although they might have been reversed, since Watson’s was a rousing, hopeful call to arms, while Doggett’s, which followed, repeated the challenges ahead. He emphasized the energy of the Tea Party wing of the opposition, something he’s witnessed first hand. (Visit YouTube for dramatizations.)
Ramey Ko and Katherine Haenschen
Touching tributes were offered for lost leaders, including Emma Barrientos, late wife of former State Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos and a huge friend of the arts. (Name the MACC for her?) Yet the climax of the evening came with a short, funny, classy speech from B.A. Bentsen, widow of late U.S. Senator and Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen.
Lynn Meredith and Robbie Ausley
She told a story about how, as soon as her husband was elected county judge in his 20s, a couple was waiting in their car outside their house, knocked on the door and asked to be married. He rolled out every ritual he could remember, including the Pledge of Allegiance, to make the ceremony work.
Maurice Culley and Catherine Robb
Before the dozens of Democratic candidates were introduced, awards went to three exceedingly fit public citizens — Catherine Robb, Lan Bentsen and Ellen Richards — who happen to have descended from the dinner’s titular leaders.
Skyler Bentsen Stewart and B.A. Bentsen
Some progressives at the event whispered that their hero, late U.S. Sen. Ralph Yarborough, should have joined the Gang of Three on the letterhead. Actually, the the chosen ones represent a balance between idealism and pragmatism that almost anyone can appreciate.
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By Rebecca Bell-Metereau
January 6, 2010 12:03 PM | Link to this
Such a wonderful event full of inspiring people. Thanks for capturing the moment!