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LIKE IT. LOVE IT. WANT SOME MORE OF IT BY JANE ROZELLE. HAYNSWORTH PHOTOGRAPHY. DECEMBER | PAGE 14 | 2015 WHEN GRAMMY–WINNING TIM MCGRAW HEADLINES YOUR EVENT, IT SETS THE BAR SKY-HIGH. SUCH WAS THE CASE AT THIS YEAR'S CATTLE BARON'S BALL — THE LARGEST SINGLE-NIGHT FUND-RAISER IN THE WORLD FOR THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY. AND MR. MCGRAW DELIVERED, HIS POPULARITY HELPING CBB'S HARD- WORKING BARONESSES RAISE MORE THAN $4 MILLION. "I REALIZED WE HAD AN INCREDIBLY SUCCESSFUL EVENT WHEN I WAS SITTING IN THE AUCTION AND LISA COOLEY LOOKED AT HER HUSBAND, CLAY, AND SAID, 'YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU,' AND THEN HE BID $70K ON THE CHEF'S PACKAGE." — MARY MARTHA PICKENS, CO-CHAIR, CATTLE BARON'S BALL H ere is how the multi-million-dollar night unfolded. With a posse of Lucchese-wearing, leather-clad pals, the cowgirl in me took a note from McGraw's songbook. I put on my boots and headed to the legendary honky-tonk Gilley's Dallas — the event's new location, after CBB decision-makers moved it from Southfork Ranch last year. First impressions are most important, and in its 42nd year, CBB lived up to its larger-than-life reputation. The innovative team at Fauxcades transformed Gilley's parking lot into an Urban Cowboy playground. Fodder festooned the entrance, and in the distance, a Ferris wheel — a recurring attraction at Cattle Baron's Ball — sparkled. Past the entrance was a 90,000-square-foot maze of jam- packed rooms, each a bit glitzier than the last. In one space, chairs Mary Martha Pickens and Tia Wynne welcomed a crowd of VIPs (Lynn McBee, Ron Corning, Vicki Chapman, Anne and Steve Stodghill, and next year's CBB chairs, Cara French and Andrea Weber) to a pre-cocktail party with bites from Mr Mesero. The private happy hour came to a close, signaling the start of the main event. Thousands of guests traipsed into Gilley's — a sea of suede and fringe — and bellied up to the bar before making their way to the silent- auction where exotic travel packages and a year's supply of Jimmy Choo shoes were up for grabs. A more boisterous pack of bidders parlayed for live- auction prizes: a tequila-tasting trip to Jalisco, Mexico; a 30-person barbecue prepared by Dallas' culinary elite; and the chance to host a poker game with Dallas Cowboys legends Troy Aikman, Tony Casillas, Charles Haley, Daryl Johnston and Darren Woodson. Eat. Drink. Bid. Repeat. That's the tried-and-true Cattle Baron's Ball mantra. An al fresco feast of cowboy fare — beef brisket, sweet roasted corn, Shiner Bock chili pie and a Cajun skillet of jambalaya and jalapeño cornbread — was served up. Then superstar Tim McGraw took to the Main Stage and belted out "The Cowboy in Me," "Highway Don't Care" and "Indian Outlaw." Boot scootin: Wendy and Boyd Messmann, Diana Hamilton, Jill Tananbaum, Katie Layton, Abby and Michael Gregory, Maggie Kipp, Olivia Kearney, John Pickens, Laura Reeder, Carol Seay, Greg Nieberding, Linda and Stan Bomar, Jonika Nix, Meredith O'Neil, Samantha and Phil Wortley, Caroline Harrison, Clayton Floyd, Vodi Cook, Teffy Jacobs, and Tanya and Pete Foster. Brooke Shelby Sunie Solomon Steve Solomon Mary Gill Chair Tia Wynne John Pickens Chair Mary Martha Pickens Ed Shaikh Gable Shaikh Shel Wynne Lawrence Bock Katy Bock Kristi Bare Tia Wynne, Mary Martha Pickens Kris Johnson Shelby Goff Streeter Berry Michal Powell Holly Hutchinson Terry Van Willson Tucker Enthoven Andrea Weber John Weber Gregory Dunbar Tim McGraw Amy Green Joanna Clarke Marjon Henderson Jamie Jo Hayes Dawn Greiner Cara French Jim French Alicia Wood Scott Wood John Michell Rachel Michell Callan Harrison Trevor Tollett Cindy Stager Gillian Breidenbach Kelly Perkins Rigas Elisa Summers Stephen Summers Tiffany Divis Ellen Winspear Niña Tollett