Allies in Hope will throw its fourth annual Hope for Houston Ball on Nov. 14 at The Revaire, a high-fashion fundraiser arriving at a tense moment for the Houston nonprofit, which has lost nearly $500,000 in federal funding dedicated to HIV testing and education this year. The 7 p.m. gala carries the theme “The Category Is… High Fashion,” pairing runway glamour with the organization's decades-long mission of HIV prevention, housing and food access across the city.
The funding loss has already cost Allies in Hope one full-time employee and reduced its testing capacity, according to Community Impact. The cuts land in a city where roughly 1,200 new HIV diagnoses are reported annually, per the same outlet's reporting, underscoring the stakes behind a party that doubles as the organization's biggest fundraiser of the year.
Kenneth Gayle, Salvador “Sal” Serrano Jr. and Nicolas Serrano of Serrano Insurance Agency will serve as co-chairs for the evening, with the Rev. Dr. Alexander E.M. Johnson and Mrs. Kristen Johnson of Brentwood Baptist Church serving as honorary chairs. Event design comes from Venus Reuben of 34th Street Events, as first detailed by CultureMap Houston. The night is set to include a cocktail reception, a VIP lounge, a seated dinner, live entertainment, stories of hope and both live and silent auctions, according to Style Magazine.
Honoring a Longtime Camp Hope Leader
This year's ball will present Dr. Theresa “Tess” Barton with the 2026 Ada Edwards Humanitarian Award, recognizing her years of service including her leadership of the Camp Hope medical team, per CultureMap Houston's reporting. Camp Hope, now in its 30th year, serves children and teens affected by HIV at Camp For All in Burton, Texas, offering a week-long summer session with full on-site medical support. One camper told organizers, as relayed by CultureMap Houston, that camp is the only week they get to just be a kid.
The camp's programming extends beyond the youngest attendees: Camp Hope offers a week of activities for youth ages 7 to 17 and runs the Grownish Leadership Institute for participants ages 18 to 20, according to Camp Hope. It is one piece of an organization that, per Style Magazine, reports serving more than 6,000 community members overall, including 3,966 patients who received testing, PrEP or other health services.
Housing and Food Access Beyond the Gala
Allies in Hope's Hope Communities initiative provides permanent supportive housing, family housing, rental assistance and wraparound services for people experiencing homelessness, housing 331 people across 247 households in 2025, according to CultureMap Houston. The organization also operates the Stone Soup Food Pantry, a donation-based, volunteer-driven program that aims to improve health outcomes by combating food insecurity, as described by Allies in Hope. CultureMap Houston reports the pantry provided nutritious food access to more than 1,600 Houstonians, while the nonprofit overall runs eight housing programs for people and families vulnerable to homelessness or affected by mental health issues, substance misuse or HIV.
That housing work unfolds against a broader local backdrop: the 2026 Point-in-Time Count found 3,321 people experiencing homelessness across Harris, Fort Bend and Montgomery counties in February, essentially flat compared with 3,325 in 2025, according to the Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County. The same count identified 2,051 sheltered individuals and 1,270 unsheltered individuals region-wide, even as the report noted 7,110 people entered homelessness for the first time during federal fiscal year 2025. The coalition also found that 85% of people who exited homelessness remained stably housed over a two-year period, and that The Way Home response system served 35,988 unique clients in 2025 while its partners housed 2,135 households.
A Legacy Dating to 1982
Allies in Hope traces its roots to 1982, when it was founded as AIDS Foundation Houston, Texas' first AIDS service organization, before rebranding under its current name in 2023, Style Magazine reports. This marks the fourth edition of the Hope for Houston Ball, following a 2024 iteration that lit up The Revaire with a disco theme, hosted by 93.7 FM's Carmen Contreras and featuring a performance by Kim Cruse and an afterparty with DJ Michelle McKnight, according to OutSmart Magazine. That year's gala honored Gilead Sciences with the Shelby Hodge Visionary Award, Dr. Joe Samuel Ratliff with the inaugural Ada Edwards Humanitarian Award, the late Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee with a posthumous Warrior for Hope Award, and Kyle T. Pierce with the inaugural Distinguished Board Member Award.
A limited number of individual tickets to the 2026 ball are available for $500 each while supplies last, with proceeds supporting Allies in Hope's work helping Houstonians access housing, food and support services, per CultureMap Houston. Those interested in sponsorship opportunities or table reservations can contact Erica Davis Rouse at [email protected].
