The Nobelity Dinner delivers more celebrity firepower than dozens of other Austin galas put together. The list of musicians, filmmakers and literary figures goes on for days.
Our table was headed by unpretentious musical treasures Bruce Robison and Kelly Willis. Nearby was Ellen Richards, whose mother, late Gov. Ann Richards, an early Nobility backer, lent her name to a new founders award.
That honor went to John McCall, an early and generous backer of Turk and Christy Pipkin’s charity that helps people with basic needs in Kenya, Nepal and Austin — just to start.
With expected saltiness, former gubernatorial candidate Kinky Friedman accepted in McCall’s name.
Brendan Hansen and Maria Groten
The big honor of the night is the Willie Nelson Feed the Peace Award, which was picked up by actor and musician Kris Kristofferson. Later, a priceless array of artists interpreted his songs.
Aside from the company — which included the likes of Luke Wilson, Augie Garrido, Jody Conradt, Brendan Hansen, Brad Leland, Elizabeth Avellan, Mike Judge, Jaston Williams and Ray Benson — among the charms of this annual affair is the rare auction that is cunningly fun and over in a matter of minutes.
Like the Glimmer of Hope Foundation auction, one pays for services — a water well, a bookmobile, a school basketball court — then the buyer also receives a nice bonus like a vacation or a festival package.
It’s so much more direct than the usual falderol and it raises tens of thousands of dollars in mere minutes.
The Pipkins know how to do it right.