Let the competition begin. In this week’s P.S. column, the North Texas Food Bank is set to soon start its annual “Food from the Bar” campaign, a friendly competition among the Dallas-area legal community to raise food for children while they’re out of school this coming summer. Also, St. Mary’s University School of Law got a generous gift to create a center for business and transaction law. And one law firm is making sure Houston Rodeo participants get home safe with free Lyft rides.
Food from the Bar Fundraiser
It’s almost that time of year again when the Dallas-area legal community engages in a friendly competition to fundraise for the North Texas Food Bank in the annual “Food from the Bar” campaign.
Last year, 24 teams raised about $168,000 and nearly 1,000 pounds of food, resulting in more than 500,000 meals, and had nearly 100 volunteers work at the Plano location during designated shifts.
The Food Bank has a goal of raising $225,000 this year between April 1 and 30, said John Jenkins, manager of strategic initiatives for the Food Bank.
Teams are awarded for the most food collected, having the best social media campaign and most volunteers, and producing top results per capita and top overall.
Last year’s winners were Sidley Austin, Thompson Coburn, Dean Omar Branham Shirley, Simon Greenstone Panatier and Vinson & Elkins.
Teams are “super competitive with the donation aspect,” Jenkins said. “With the volunteer shifts, it’s less competitive and more camaraderie.”
Any legal group can participate; the campaign is not limited to law firms, Jenkins stressed. For example, the 2008 class of Southern Methodist University’s Dedmon School of Law had a team, Jenkins said.
Aiming to fight childhood hunger during the summer months when schools are out of session, the North Texas Food Bank incorporated the event seven years ago, following other cities, including Houston and San Francisco.
Teams can register on the North Texas Food Bank website. There is no deadline to register a team within the month, although late registrants may not get a chance to volunteer in person, Jenkins warned.
There’s folklore that one team won the top prize after registering halfway through the month one year, said Sheppard Mullin partner Amanda Cottrell, who leads the Dallas Bar Association’s Food from the Bar efforts.
“It’s a great way to drive a common goal within your team,” Cottrell said. “I think that that’s an important part of culture.”
Free Houston Rodeo Lyft Rides
One Houston-area law firm is helping Houston Rodeo goers get home safe by covering the costs of Lyft rides.
Since early March, J.D. Silva & Associates in Pearland has been providing up to 500 free Lyft rides from the Houston Rodeo at NRG Stadium. The Lyft code, JDSILVARODEO2, is valid through Saturday, according to the firm.
“Our goal is to save lives and make it as easy as possible for people to make the safe choice and avoid drinking and driving,” said Johnathan D. Silva, Founder and Managing Partner of J.D. Silva & Associates.
$5M Gift to St. Mary’s University School of Law
St. Mary’s University School of Law is creating the Bennie W. Bock II Center for Business and Transaction Law at St. Mary’s thanks to a $5 million gift, the university announced this week.
The Oatman Hill Foundation, created by the estate of law alumnus Bennie Walter Bock II, made the hefty donation. Before he died in 2022, the 1968 School of Law graduate had been having discussions with university officials about gifting the school funds for a center for business and transactional law, the university said. The center includes a program fund, an endowed professorship and a student support fund.
“By creating the new Bennie W. Bock II Center for Business and Transaction Law, this gift will elevate the study of business law in our region through the many careers it will inspire,” St. Mary’s University President Winston Erevelles said.
Bock, a former state representative, had a career as a businessman and lawyer. Among his many businesses, Bock owned and operated an automobile dealership and radio station.
The gift honors Bock’s legacy by addressing a need to educate law students “who will serve their community either by assisting businesses or having their own business,” said Judge William D. Old III of the 25th District Court in Seguin and director of the Oatman Hill Foundation.
Center activities are slated to become available in the Fall 2025 semester.