The Dallas Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki was awarded the prestigious H. Neil Mallon Award Friday night at a gala dinner for 1,000 at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas.
The Mallon is awarded by the nonprofit, nonpartisan World Affairs Council of Dallas-Fort Worth, who had this to say about Nowitzki's honor:
"Nowitzki, the 34th recipient of the award, was honored for his continuing, exemplary work as a humanitarian and international ambassador for Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas and the nation. The award is named for the Dallas industrialist, Dresser Industries President H. Neil Mallon, who founded the Council in 1951 as a means of making North Texas a center for international business and cultural connections.
Marjorie Adams, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the World Affairs Council, said, "Tonight we honored an international icon for the city of Dallas. A celebration of his nearly 20 years of big-hearted, principled ambassadorship for our city is long overdue."
Mark Followill, Dallas Mavericks television play-by-play announcer, conducted an on-stage conversation with Dirk Nowitzki after the award presentation by the Honorable Michael Rawlings, Mayor of Dallas.
A legendary power forward and 13-time NBA All-Star, Nowitzki led Dallas to its first National Basketball Association title in the 2010-2011 season. He is the first European to win the NBA's Most Valuable Player honor and last year became one of just six players in NBA history and the first international player to score at least 30,000 points. Nowitzki has spent his professional basketball career with the Dallas Mavericks since the 1998 NBA draft. Off-court, his philanthropic efforts have earned him many honors. In 2013, he was named Germany's UNICEF Goodwill ambassador with the mission of fighting childhood malnutrition and promoting healthy lifestyles around the world. Dirk and his wife, Jessica, are the guideposts for the Dirk Nowitzki Foundation, which through its programs lifts the spirits of children in neighborhoods and classrooms by providing tangible evidence of hope for the future.
Honorary dinner chairs of this dinner which raises funds for the programs of the World Affairs Council were the Honorable Betsy Price, Mayor of Fort Worth, the Honorable Michael Rawlings, Mayor of Dallas, and Tiffany Stewart and Mark Cuban. The dinner chair was Marjorie A. Adams. The host committee included Charlotte and Shy Anderson, Lindsay and George Billingsley, Jennifer and Coley Clark, Rebekah and Michael Finley, Joyce and Tim Goss, Kenny Goss, Sue and Jimmy Gragg, Faisal Halum and Brian Bolke, Georgina Hartland, Nasiba and Thomas Hartland-Mackie, Kari and Troy Kloewer, Jamahl and Kristina Mosley, Dr. Nimesh Patel and Bina Palnitkar Patel, Jan Miller and Jeff Rich, Myrna and Bob Schlegel, Anne and Steve Stodghill, and Kimberly and Justin Whitman.
Previous recipients of the Mallon Award include developers Trammell Crow and Lucy Crow Billingsley, business executives H. Ross Perot and Ross Perot Jr., retired Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President and CEO Richard Fisher, real estate legend Ebby Halliday Acers and Maurice Acers, AT&T Chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson, Exxon Mobil Corp. Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson, Dallas oilman Ray L. Hunt, U.S. Vice President Richard Cheney and President George H.W. Bush. Last year's recipient was American Airlines Group's Chairman and CEO Doug Parker.
The World Affairs Council is a non-partisan, non-profit organization dedicated since 1951 to educating and engaging the public on foreign policy and global issues. Information regarding membership and programs is available online at dfwworld.org. For additional information call 214-965-8413.
Since its founding in 1951, the mission of the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth has been to provide relevant information about global issues, challenges and opportunities while establishing North Texas as a center for international interests and business.
