By Joy Donovan
Northeast Tarrant County senior girls, who have devoted six years to community service and leadership development, were honored in five separate special events.
National Charity League, Inc., a mother-daughter organization celebrating its centennial this year, boasts five chapters in North Tarrant County. These chapters follow the national organization’s tradition of honoring its graduating senior girls as they complete the organization’s six-year program, where girls from seventh grade to seniors in high school, known as tockers, have completed cultural, social and volunteer experiences.
Each chapter holds its own celebratory Senior Recognition event to congratulate the seniors for working, often alongside their mothers, in such volunteer service as helping at public libraries, delivering meals to shut-ins and working at community food pantries. Leadership development, civic involvement, volunteer commitment and cultural experiences are areas of organizational focus, with mothers and daughters in collaboration.
The Colleyville Area Chapter was the first chapter founded in Tarrant County by Lee Skeets Koch more than 30 years ago. The chapter was launched when a family moved from Houston, which meant Koch’s daughters would miss a chance to participate. With a growing popularity in NCL’s mission, North Tarrant County boasts more chapters. The chapters of DFW Metroport, Keller, Southlake and the newest Trophy Club are part of almost 3 million volunteer hours donated to more than 6,000 charities nationally each year. More information is available at nationalcharityleague.org.
Keller
With the theme “You Can Be Anything,” the Keller Chapter of National Charity League honored 18 senior girls with a seated dinner April 13 at the Hurst Convention Center.
Graduating senior girls from Keller High School, Byron Nelson High School, Carroll Senior High School, The Oakridge School and Grapevine Faith Christian School wore floor-length black gowns and were introduced by former patroness Allison Connor.
Attendees included chapter members, the seniors’ family members and invited guests who enjoyed a ballroom splashed in pale pink and decorated with pearls and bows. The seniors’ tables were decorated with gold candelabras topped with fresh floral arrangements and adorned with strings of pearls.
Each senior table also included a framed photo of a senior with her mother. Mothers escorted their senior daughters to the stage, where they were joined by their fathers.
Co-chairwomen Tracy Sones and Tammy Deras curated an evening of recognition, celebrating the graduating members with accolades, service awards, and a tribute video. As a class, the tockers of 2025 dedicated 4,108 volunteer hours during six years, leaving a legacy of service.
“These girls not only make a difference in our communities, but they set an example in our chapter for our younger Ticktockers. We are excited to see what the future holds for these young ladies,” chapter president Jamie Stafin says.
Colleyville Area
The Colleyville Area Chapter of National Charity League honored 22 graduating senior girls at its senior presentation at Southlake’s Westin Hotel on April 6.
The 100th anniversary of National Charity League, Inc. inspired the evening’s theme. Event co-chairs Jessica Evans and Stacy Amerson used a diamond theme, carrying the sparkle from centerpieces to backdrop displays to a senior portrait wall, and accenting it with gold, silver and dusty blue colors.
Graduating seniors represented Colleyville Heritage High School, Grapevine High School, Keller High School and Grapevine Faith Christian School with families, chapter members and guests of the honorees included in the event. Parents escorted their daughters into the ballroom, and a rose was presented to each honoree.
Since 2019, the seniors along with their mothers have volunteered collectively 6,165 hours with the chapter’s designated philanthropy partners. Those hours included more than 1,100 hours helping with the Summer Reading Program at the Colleyville Public Library and more than 600 hours with the GRACE non-profit organization. Even during the COVID pandemic when volunteering in person was not possible, the seniors wrote letters to soldiers and notes to hospitalized children.
“These young women have accomplished so much throughout their high school career, and we can’t wait to watch them launch into their next chapter representing NCL. They truly shine bright like diamonds,” Amerson said.
DFW Metroport
Chapter members, senior class families and friends honored the 17 senior Ticktockers of the DFW Metroport Chapter at an afternoon presentation April 27 at The Marq in Southlake.
For the coastal granddaughter theme, the ballroom was decorated in shades of blue, white and cream, and the graduating seniors wore the same colors. The senior girls, who entered the event space with their mothers, hailed from Colleyville Heritage High School, Grapevine High School, Carroll Senior High School, Grapevine Faith Christian School, Argyle High School, Shelton School and Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.
For the celebration led by chapter president Emily Roberts and chapter vice president Laura Neal, biographies of each honoree were read. Accomplishments within the Class of 2025 include more than 4,500 community service hours, a president of National Honor Society, Miss Texas Teen, a state champion soccer player, cheerleaders, camp leaders, national dance champions, varsity athletes, American Legion Auxiliary Texas Bluebonnet Girls and service award winners.
“Senior Recognition is a beautiful tradition where our chapter comes together to celebrate six years of hard work, leadership development and the countless hours serving our community,” Roberts says. “Over the last six years, I’ve watched them go from preteen giggly girls to beautiful, accomplished young women, each with unique perspectives, identities and paths forward. As a senior recognition co-chair and chapter member, I think it’s a marvelous thing to have a front-row seat to important chapters of their lives, and now we get to cheer them on as they enter their next chapter.”
Southlake
Wearing white formal gowns and carrying bouquets of hydrangeas and roses, 30 girls from the class of 2025 were presented at the senior presentation for Southlake’s NCL Chapter held Jan. 19 at The Westin Hotel Southlake.
The evening event began with a reception before the seniors were escorted into the ballroom where Ryan Wilson, principal at Carroll Senior High School, served as emcee. Seniors from Carroll Senior High School, Grapevine Faith Christian School, Liberty Christian School, Shelton High School and Westlake Academy were recognized at the event that included family, friends and members of the junior and senior classes.
The presentation, led by chairwomen Jennifer Barry, Julie Haley and Heather Engelhardt, included videos, speeches and award presentations. Trees, azaleas, ferns and grasses transformed the ballroom into a garden-like setting, while tables were decorated with golden birdcages, antique frames and greenery atop pink and floral table linens.
During their time in NCL, the class of 2025 Ticktockers and Patronesses totaled more than 9,400 community service hours. The evening concluded with each senior being presented her NCL graduation cords. “It was wonderful to recognize the impact that these young women and their mothers have had on our chapter and the surrounding community,” chapter president Kristi Dyer says.
Trophy Club
Trophy Club Country Club was the setting on April 4 for the Trophy Club Chapter of National Charity League’s annual senior recognition event.
This group of eight senior girls included the first Ticktockers to complete the entire six-year program in Trophy Club’s chapter, the newest in Northern Tarrant County. The seniors represented Byron Nelson High School, Carroll Senior High School and V.R. Eaton High School and were honored during an evening of dinner and dancing among chapter members, family and friends. With a theme of NCL & Co., the ballroom was decorated with a Tiffany & Co. motif, including jewelry, accessories and Tiffany blue accented with pink floral centerpieces.
Parents presented the seniors donned in white formal gowns. The graduating class that volunteered with a variety of local charities will go on to study at Baylor University, Clemson University, The University of Oklahoma, The University of Tennessee, The University of Texas and Texas A&M University.
Presentations during the evening celebration included NCL national service awards and remarks from chapter president Erin Hall, Abby Couch, senior Ticktocker class president and communications vice president Campbell Lobato. A video honoring the seniors and their mothers highlighted the evening planned by co-chairwomen Jennifer Stites and Elizabeth Henry.
“As chairs of this year’s NCL & Co.-themed Senior Recognition, it was a joy to honor our amazing seniors and their equally inspiring mothers,” Stites says. “As Holly Golightly said in the movie, ‘Anyone who ever gave you confidence, you owe them a lot,’ and today, we celebrated the confidence, grace and service built through years of love, leadership and dedication.”