The Magdalen House, a nonprofit organization helping individuals achieve sobriety and sustain recovery from alcoholism at no cost and based on 12-Step spiritual principles, will host the annual Leave a Legacy “Live Loud and Free” community concert on Thursday, October 19. Guests are encouraged to don their finest western wear to enjoy live music by Morgan Wade. Fresh off the heels of her stop at Austin City Limits, she is one of Nashville’s fastest rising and most critically acclaimed young stars. Possessed with a raw and unflinching voice anchored by a perfect tinge of twang; the rare ability to pen honest portraits of some of life’s most precious and painful and unpredictable moments; she boasts an onstage vulnerability that so seamlessly breaks down the wall between fan and artist. Guests will also be able to bid on incredible auction items —all while celebrating the freedom of recovery and raising awareness and much-needed funds to help D/FW women and men achieve alcoholism recovery.
“We are so excited to celebrate the freedom of recovery with our supporters at this year’s Leave a Legacy event. We would not be where we are today without the support of our generous community. It is through the generosity of supporters like The David M. Crowley Foundation that we can provide no cost services to those impacted by alcoholism,” says Lisa Kroencke, CEO of The Magdalen House. “We are delighted to recognize The David M. Crowley foundation at this year’s event as our honorary chair.”
Created in 1990 by David Crowley and Sandra Hallmark, the foundation is committed to addressing the social needs of the D/FW community. The David M. Crowley Foundation has selected The Magdalen House as a designated charity and as such has given many generous grants over the past several years, including seed funding which allowed the agency to launch its Legacy of Hope Capital Campaign. The David M. Crowley Foundation has been a generous supporter of The Magdalen House since 2016 and has helped impact thousands of lives. Through its compassionate gifts, the Foundation has truly been instrumental in realizing the mission of providing individuals with freedom from alcoholism.
This year’s event is co-chaired by, Nancy Gottsacker, JoAnne Moore, and Melissa Utley. Nancy Gottsacker has been involved with The Magdalen House for over 10 years. She was first introduced when her daughter began volunteering, and watched it save her life. Gottsacker says, “It’s been wonderful watching the growth, seeing how many alcoholic lives have been saved.” Nancy now gives back to The Magdalen House by volunteering, donating, and chairing events like Leave a Legacy.
JoAnne Moore first attended the Leave a Legacy event in 2018 and helped The Magdalen House development team with auction solicitation. Since then, she has been on the host committee and given monetarily to the event. She stated, “I am chairing this event because I want to help Maggie’s House reach and help even more women and now men!”
Melissa Utley has been a supporter of The Magdalen House for about 10 years. She is deeply connected to the mission due to the disease of alcoholism being in her immediate family. She has been involved with the Leave a Legacy event for years serving on the host committee, solicitation team, and now as co-chair.
“We are beyond grateful for the support and dedication of our event co-chairs, who have helped us plan an evening that our supporters certainly won’t forget,” says Kroencke.
One in 9 adults suffer from alcohol use disorder. Today, there are over 250,000 alcoholic women in D/FW alone and approximately 400,000 men struggling with alcohol in D/FW. If you’re an alcoholic who can’t stop drinking or a concerned loved one of an alcoholic, the first step in recovery is education and access to resources. In North Texas, The Magdalen House provides residential recovery, detox, group meetings, structured programs, family support groups, and tools designed to help grow and sustain recovery. Proceeds from fundraising events like Leave a Legacy help to ensure that The Magdalen House can continue to provide no-cost services to alcoholic women and men.