The La Jolla-based philanthropy group celebrated its landmark year while welcoming a 12-person new class and announcing its 81st Jewel Ball: “Okavango.”
The last year for La Jolla-based philanthropy group Las Patronas was a milestone in more ways than one: In addition to celebrating 80 years of supporting San Diego nonprofits, the fundraising cycle, which culminated with the 2026 Jewel Ball, raised a record $1,403,212.
The 2025 Jewel Ball raised about $900,000; this year’s numbers mark the “highest donation record that there has ever been for Las Patronas,” Jenny McGowan, 2026 Jewel Ball chair, said.
“Essential to this year’s phenomenal success,” McGowan said, is how the group “honored our traditions while expanding our reach and doing a lot more business.”
“I see a dynamic, more robust Las Patronas” going forward, she said.
Las Patronas’ yearlong fundraising efforts and the annual presentation of its renowned Jewel Balls have meant more than $30 million donated to capital projects for more than 1,000 major and minor beneficiaries since 1946.
“The times when we come together as both active members and [advisors] shows us how different we are from typical organizations, and it’s always inspiring,” said Dagmar Smek, current Las Patronas president.
Las Patronas is part of a “critical nonprofit ecosystem,” Smek said, “and that is really motivating as we embark on our 81st year and our next decade.”
Las Patronas will now turn its attention to the 2027 Jewel Ball, to be held per tradition in August at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club. The theme: “Okavango,” named for the Okavango delta in Botswana that floods annually, resulting in the animals’ adapting their behavior patterns around the yearly flood.
“Miraculously, great herds of grazing animals survive here,” Jewel Ball co-chair Stephanie Stone said. “They lead a nomadic existence, trekking huge distances in search of food and water. They are waiting for an annual event that will dramatically change their lives.”
The Okavango-themed Jewel Ball will honor those unique characteristics, Jewel Ball Chair Lisa Bresnahan said; the evening will be a “glamorous black tie evening inspired by shimmering water, extraordinary wildlife and the beauty of this remarkable landscape, with a few surprises along the way.”
The Oct 21 luncheon also welcomed a larger-than-usual new class of members: Liz Cebron, Daisy Dai, Katie Emery, Diana H Ferguson, Taylor Doyle Hilsman, Jennifer Levy, Catherine (Cat) Martin, Anna Palmer, Nicole Peck, Karen Scarff, Allison Stone and Erica Tsai.
“With this kind of commitment from the women who built [Las Patronas] and the women who are joining it today,” membership co-chair Jennifer McIlvaine Landa said, “I have no doubt that our legacy will thrive for another 80 years and beyond.”
