Good Apple Dinner

Lael and Peter are respected civic and philanthropic leaders whose contributions have extended educational opportunities, spurred economic development, and strengthened neighborhoods and communities for countless families in Dallas and beyond.

Lael is a dedicated community activist who focuses on issues of justice and empowerment. She is the Board Chair of the Innocence Project of Texas and a Board Member of North Texas Public Broadcasting. She has also supported numerous organizations serving women and girls, including as a past Board Member of the North Texas Association for the Reduction of Pregnancy in Teens; Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas; Friends of Planned Parenthood, of which she was also a Board Chair; and the Texas Women’s Foundation, for which she also co-chaired the 2018 luncheon and raised $1.6 million. A prolific fundraiser, Lael has raised more than $5 million for philanthropic causes in Dallas and throughout Texas. In memory of Jacob, Lael and Peter’s son, she is currently focused on the issue of fentanyl’s proliferation in our community.

Peter is an investor and business executive dedicated to systemic change. For the last two decades, he has worked to expand economic opportunity and improve community safety for everyone living in the North Texas region. He has served as Board Chair of Housing Forward, the City of Dallas’ Animal Advisory Commission, and on the boards of KIPP Texas, North Texas Public Broadcasting, AT&T Performing Arts Center, Vogel Alcove, and Dallas Symphony Orchestra. He also is a member of the Dallas Assembly, an organization of leaders from Dallas’ business, civic, and nonprofit sectors who are committed to the betterment of the city. In 2023, Peter was awarded the J. Erik Jonsson Ethics Award by Southern Methodist University’s Cary M. Maguire Center for Ethics and Public Responsibility.

In 2015, Lael and Peter purchased the former Red Bird Mall in Dallas, now called the Shops at RedBird, with the goal of creating a new mixed-use development to spur economic growth in Southern Dallas. The project has resulted in more than 1,500 new jobs and has brought a resurgence of new investment to the area, including health care, retail, and housing.