Sky Ball XVI

DALLAS, TX — From October 25-27, Robert attended the 16th annual American Airlines Sky Ball gala, which is billed as the largest military support event in the nation. Representing the Robert Irvine Foundation, Robert cooked up a massive feast for 4,000 guests on Friday evening at the Salute to the Heroes Concert and another 2,700 on Saturday at the official Sky Ball XVI Gala.

The attendees paid a premium price for tickets to the dinners and concert featuring Jon Christopher Davis, shelling out anywhere from $500 up to $150,000 to support the Airpower Foundation, which delivers a wide range of support to the nation’s active duty and retired wounded veterans and their families.

The three days of festivities began on Thursday evening with a Return to Freedom Celebration Gala held at the Westin Dallas-Fort Worth Airport Hotel, which honored Vietnam prisoners of war. The next two nights saw the festivities move to Hangar 5 at the DFW Airport, a massive venue packed to the rafters with veterans, active duty service members, and the many civilians making considerable donations to the cause.

While a final donation tally for this year’s event was not yet available, Sky Ball has shown considerable year-over-year growth, with last year’s event raising a grand total of $3.1 million.

“That’s a big number and this event has incredible momentum,” Robert said. “I want to be here every year to support Sky Ball because it does incredible work and there’s a tremendous groundswell of support for it. It’s a great weekend where everyone’s efforts are multiplied.

“Many hands make light work and Sky Ball is a fantastic example to charities everywhere. If you have a great cause, great organization, and can make a real difference in the lives of people who need it, then the energy becomes self-perpetuating.“Every year Sky Ball is bigger and better. And thank God it is, because our veterans really need it.”