Children’s Museum Houston’s annual gala raised $1.3 million this week, a record for the institution’s fundraising event. More than 500 guests attended Once Upon a Time: A Fairytale Fashion Gala at The Corinthian in downtown Houston; the museum says the proceeds will support its educational programs and outreach.
The $1.3 million total is the museum’s highest single-night gala haul to date, according to CultureMap Houston, which reported that more than 500 people attended at The Corinthian. The museum says the funds support its mission to improve the trajectories of all children through what it calls innovative, child-centered learning, according to a statement on the museum's website.
Jessica and Michael Bertuccio and Bahareh and James Flavin chaired the event, CultureMap reported. The host committee also included underwriting chairs Lauren and Max Barrett and Lilly and Harrison Cullen; Alex Butt and Claire Virga served as auction chairs, and Brittany Franklin was the auctioneer.
A Storybook Entrance and a Ballroom Full of Music
The Avondale Orchestra played as guests danced, and late-night servings of chicken and waffles and truffle fries followed, according to CultureMap’s account of the event.
Among the auction offerings were getaways to a Mexican estate and Riviera Maya, VIP Houston sports experiences, and the chance to throw a ceremonial first pitch at an Astros game. The first-pitch opportunity also appeared at the museum’s 2025 gala, according to cmhouston.org.
Breaking a Streak of Record-Setting Nights
The $1.3 million result extends a string of record-setting totals for the museum’s signature gala. Its 2025 Prom Night: Party Like It's 1999 event, also held at The Corinthian, drew more than 460 guests and raised a then-record $1.163 million, cmhouston.org reported. In 2024, the Noir Ball brought nearly 500 patrons to The Corinthian and raised $1.14 million, then the second-highest total in the museum’s history.
The 2021 Great Gatsby Gala, chaired by Devorah and David Krieger and Ashley and Jonathan Sloan, raised $961,000 at The Corinthian. Most of the funds benefited the museum’s free-admission programming, according to the Houston Chronicle.
What the Money Supports
Children's Museum Houston frames its galas as fuel for programming that the institution says reaches families well beyond gala night. The museum reports that 95% of visitors said their families had a great museum experience, and that 94% of students showed curiosity, asked questions, and gained new knowledge or skills during their visits, according to the museum's community impact page.
The museum also points to its outreach work with parents and caregivers, reporting that 98% of adults in its outreach programs said they felt increased confidence in their role as their child's first teacher, and that 97% of teachers described students as highly engaged with meaningful opportunities to think critically during museum field trips. Among its tools for that outreach are 240 unique literacy activity kits that parents and caregivers check out 15,000 times each year. The museum says it has been recognized as one of the world's leading children's museums for 45 years.
Fundraising, spending and access
Children’s Museum Houston’s 2023 Form 990 lists $12,105,189 in total program service expenses, according to the museum’s 2023 Form 990. That provides financial context but does not specify that this year’s gala proceeds are restricted to particular programs.
For families seeking lower-cost ways to visit, the museum says Free Family Night offers admission every Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m., with at least one child required in each group. Its Open Doors program works with nonprofit partners to provide free admission to families who cannot afford it; each pass admits a family of six.
Back at the gala itself, a few lucky guests left with more than a good night out. Cassie Brothers won diamond earrings in the raffle, while Nina Rand walked away with diamond studs in a paddle sweep, closing out a night that blended fairytale spectacle with the museum's broader fundraising ambitions.
