The Goodfellow Fund provides $100 gift cards to low-income families.
Among the many things the legendary Amon G. Carter did in his lifetime was to be a driving force for two organizations that help make life better for children and families in his beloved Tarrant County.
Carter died in 1955, but the Goodfellow Fund and the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Tarrant County are still going strong. And now they are joining forces to strengthen one of Carter’s favorite times of the year, assisting underprivileged families during the holidays.
Coincidentally, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County is celebrating 100 years of service in 2026. Carter served on the board of directors for the original Panther Boys Club, which would later change its name.
Meanwhile, the Goodfellow Fund has been around since 1912 when Carter, then publisher of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, made it his newspaper’s charity.
“Our partnership combines the resources of the Goodfellow Fund with the reach and trusted reputation of the Boys & Girls Clubs, emphasizing the value of community-based collaborations,” B&G Clubs of Tarrant County President/CEO Daphne Barlow said. “Together, we can extend our collective impact and make an even greater difference across Tarrant County.”
Steve Coffman, who recently retired as the president and editor of the Star-Telegram, serves as president of the board of Star-Telegram Charities, the nonprofit organization that operates the Goodfellow Fund. He is excited about the partnership with the Boys & Girls Club of Tarrant County.
“The partnership will make the Goodfellow Fund more efficient, benefitting the children of Fort Worth and Tarrant County while promoting good stewardship of the funds so generously donated by individuals, businesses and organizations in the community,” Coffman said.
“I’d like to think that Amon Carter would be proud to see two organizations that he cared so deeply about joining forces help families who may be struggling and to bring smiles to kids’ faces.”
$100 Old Navy gift cards for children
Calling it “a great way to continue the legacy of Amon Carter and make it a full circle moment,” Goodfellow Executive Director Keshia Bruno said this year they have once again joined with Old Navy clothing stores to offer $100 gift cards to children.
Barlow noted that when the opportunity arose to partner with Goodfellows, it simply made sense.
“Working smarter with the resources we’ve all worked so hard to secure is important. It’s even more important as families face hard choices every day about housing costs, fuel costs and groceries,” she said. “This partnership allows us to connect children and families with resources made possible by people in our community who care deeply about their neighbors and want to make a difference.
“By working together to make sure that we reach families where they are already receiving services at the Boys & Girls Club helps families reduce transportation costs. At the same time, this also helps Goodfellows reach families more efficiently and reduce outreach costs.”
Bruno said Goodfellows plans to offer 6,000 of the gift cards to families facing financial hardships. The role of the B&G Clubs, which served over 88,000 youth in Tarrant County last year, will be to help identify youngsters who are in need of new clothes and new shoes.
They will assist families in completing the Goodfellows application. They will also help in the distribution of the gift cards to selected families.
Goodfellow Fund history
The Goodfellow Fund began as an offshoot of the first newspaper charity drive in the United States, started by the Chicago Tribune on Dec. 10, 1909. A Chicago city attorney wrote a letter challenging his friends to donate the money they would have spent on holiday partying to charity.
A couple years later, the Advertising Club of Fort Worth staged the first local Goodfellow campaign. On the day after Thanksgiving in 1912, Carter brought the tradition to the Star-Telegram.
To find out more, or to learn more about helping, visit .goodfellowfundfw.com/donate. The post office box for donations and correspondence is P.O. Box 149, Fort Worth, TX. 76101.
New Goodfellows director
Bruno came on board with Goodfellows during the summer. She has spent more than 20 years working in nonprofit leadership, with much of her career centered on children, families, education, workforce development and community partnerships.
She said what immediately drew her to the organization was both its history in Fort Worth and the simplicity of its mission — helping children have access to new clothing and shoes.
“I was also a child who benefited from programs like Goodfellows, and what I remember most was the relief that assistance brought to the adults around me,” Bruno recalled. “That experience shaped how I see this work.
“Families can be working hard and still find themselves needing a little help. A $100 gift card may seem simple, but for a parent stretching a household budget, it can mean new shoes or clothes for a child while freeing up money for rent, groceries, utilities or another immediate need.”
She noted that just as important is making sure that help is provided in a way that preserves a family’s dignity.
“That combination of personal experience and more than 20 years in nonprofit work is a big part of how I approach my role at Goodfellows,” she said.
Boys and Girls Club history in Tarrant County
The organization’s Fort Worth roots began with the Panther Boys Club, which opened Nov. 17, 1926. It was one of the earliest Boys Clubs in Texas.
Carter served on the board of directors and was one of several prominent Fort Worth civic leaders involved in supporting and governing the club during its early years.
The Amon G. Carter Foundation later purchased a complex for the Panther Boys Club after Trinity Episcopal Church relocated. That facility gave the club significantly expanded space and included a library, machine shop, boxing arena, gymnasium, locker rooms and other youth-programming facilities.
An Olympic-size swimming pool was added in 1962.
The Panther Boys Club continued operating for decades as one of Fort Worth’s principal youth-serving organizations. In 1935, a separate organization, the Fort Worth Boys Club, was created on Fort Worth’s north side.
The two organizations operated separately for more than 50 years. They merged in 1990 to form Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Fort Worth.
In 2018, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Fort Worth merged with Boys & Girls Clubs of Arlington to form the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County.
The organization works as thus:
Youth attend traditional branch programs at 11 locations and stand alone “Clubs” after school and during the summer. They can attend after-school programs on school campuses at one of 36 schools.
They may also participate in evidence-based programs during the school day or outside the day at a community center. These programs help a young person build skills to say yes to positive activities and avoid activities like drugs and alcohol.
Middle and high school students participate in pre-college programs to receive direct case management so that they are ready for high school graduation and college.
Mobile Clubhouses bring the Boys & Girls Club experience to youth where they live. The Mobile Clubhouse program takes place at apartment communities, schools and other locations.
Every day, the Boys & Girls Club Blue Door Kitchen serves freshly made meals to kids and teens who attend programs at the Club, and to those at other community programs.
A shared history
“Our deep history and ties to the community are shared,” Barlow said of the union with Goodfellows. “It’s wonderful to see these two organizations, 100 years later, still thriving, coming together to meet the needs of our community.”
Barlow said that history is a testament to the community leaders and everyday people who have chosen to care for others over many decades.
“Today, we have an opportunity to build on that legacy by connecting families to resources made possible by people who care, while working together to make those resources go even further,” she said. “It’s a meaningful continuation of a shared commitment to our community and a reminder that when we work together, we can have an even greater impact.”
This story was originally published October 1, 2026 at 3:03 PM.