{"id":442003,"date":"2026-09-20T13:20:09","date_gmt":"2026-09-20T13:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/442003\/"},"modified":"2026-09-20T13:20:09","modified_gmt":"2026-09-20T13:20:09","slug":"jennifer-sampson-united-ways-ceo-gives-an-emotional-swansong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/442003\/","title":{"rendered":"Jennifer Sampson, United Way\u2019s CEO, gives an emotional swansong"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Jennifer Sampson, CEO of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas with Lyndal Stephens Greth (left) and Ashlee and Chris Kleinert (top right) during the Toqueville Society luncheon in Dallas on Sept. 15, 2026.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallasnews.com\/business\/philanthropy\/2017\/05\/12\/how-dallas-united-way-ceo-jennifer-sampson-balances-raising-family-raising-millions\/\" data-link=\"native\" class=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Jennifer Sampson<\/a> was in her element as she officially ended her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallasnews.com\/business\/philanthropy\/2026\/03\/26\/united-ways-jennifer-sampson-stepping-down-as-leader-of-dallas-charity\/\" data-link=\"native\" class=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">25 years of leadership roles for United Way of Metropolitan Dallas<\/a> \u2014 including the last 15 years as its transformational CEO.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn-channels-pixel.ex.co\/events\/0012000001fxZm9AAE?integrationType=DEFAULT&amp;template=design%2Farticle%2Fplatypus_two_column.tpl\" alt=\"\" class=\"x1px y1px vh abs\" aria-hidden=\"true\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI feel like my heart is about to explode,\u201d Sampson told 300 members of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallasnews.com\/business\/2010\/10\/23\/a-passing-of-the-torch-for-united-way-tocqueville-society-in-dallas\/\" data-link=\"native\" class=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Tocqueville Society of Dallas<\/a> attending its luncheon Tuesday at the Ritz-Carlton. \u201cI\u2019ve stood at the United Way podium thousands of times over the past 25 years, but never quite like this. So if I stumble up here, I hope you\u2019ll remember the old me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Ashlee Kleinert, Jennifer Sampson and Chris Kleinert, CEO of Hunt Realty Investments, at the Tocqueville Society luncheon Sept. 15. \u00a0\" loading=\"eager\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofct bgsct block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Ashlee Kleinert, Jennifer Sampson and Chris Kleinert, CEO of Hunt Realty Investments, at the Tocqueville Society luncheon Sept. 15. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Tamytha Caneron\/Courtesy Tocqueville Society<img alt=\"Lyndal Stephens Greth, executive chairman of The Stephens Greth Foundation, left, with Jennifer Sampson, at the Tocqueville Society luncheon Sept\u00a0 15. Sampson is leaving her post as CEO of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas at the end of September to become CEO of the Dallas-based foundation.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofct bgsct block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Lyndal Stephens Greth, executive chairman of The Stephens Greth Foundation, left, with Jennifer Sampson, at the Tocqueville Society luncheon Sept\u00a0 15. Sampson is leaving her post as CEO of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas at the end of September to become CEO of the Dallas-based foundation.<\/p>\n<p>Tamytha Caneron\/Courtesy Tocqueville Society<img alt=\"Fireside chat moderator, Jim Burke. CEO of Vistra, left, with Tim Burke, CEO, Fifth Third Bancorp, and Curtis Farmer, Fifth Third vice chairman at the Tocqueville Society luncheon Sept. 15.\u00a0\u00a0\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Fireside chat moderator, Jim Burke. CEO of Vistra, left, with Tim Burke, CEO, Fifth Third Bancorp, and Curtis Farmer, Fifth Third vice chairman at the Tocqueville Society luncheon Sept. 15.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Courtesy Tocqueville Society\/Tamytha Caneron<\/p>\n<p>By that, the 56-year-old\u00a0\u2014 ubiquitously known as Jennifer or Jen\u00a0\u2014 means a high-octane, self-assured leader, multitasker who never takes no for an answer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>Except when it comes from her father, Dr. Jerry Hilton.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you look at the dictionary for a strong-willed child, that\u2019s her picture,\u201d Hilton said in a tribute video that she was forbidden to see before the luncheon. \u201cShe pressed every boundary.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThings that we don\u2019t want to go into,\u201d adds her mom, Gracie.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/1226016015?h=da17eb068b&amp;dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>Sampson is leaving United Way at the end of this month to become the \u00a0CEO of The Stephens Greth Foundation, a $2-billion-plus endowment that supports philanthropic initiatives throughout Texas\u00a0\u2014 large and small.<\/p>\n<p>The foundation, established two years ago by the family of the late oil tycoon, Autry Stephens, recently made headlines with its<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallasnews.com\/business\/philanthropy\/article\/united-way-metropolitan-dallas-lands-largest-ever-22422094.php\" data-link=\"native\" class=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"> $15.5 million gift to Dallas\u2019 United Way<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 the largest donation in the nonprofit\u2019s 102-year history.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo celebrate this extraordinary gift\u00a0\u2014 and to know that it comes from the family and the foundation that I\u2019ll have the privilege of serving next\u00a0\u2014 makes this moment one that I will never forget.\u201d Sampson told the audience.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is also something pretty extraordinary about standing here with these two parts of my professional life meeting at the same moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Tocqueville Society of Dallas holds a special place in her heart.<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>It was founded in 1984 by the late Ruth Sharp Altshuler and Margot Perot to support Dallas\u2019 United Way. Today, it\u2019s the nation\u2019s largest Tocqueville Society\u00a0\u2014 named for philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville\u00a0\u2014 with more than 1,400 high-profile donors who pay at least $10,000 annually to join.<\/p>\n<p>Ashlee and Chris Kleinert are co-chairs of a campaign to raise $800 million for United Way. She puts it this way: \u201cJennifer has a remarkable ability to turn a casual conversation into a commitment\u00a0\u2014 and somehow make you grateful that she did.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChris and I are living proof. We started as interested observers, and before we knew it, we were all in. That\u2019s Jennifer.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Sampson\u2019s parting gift from her United Way colleagues was a plaque with her rallying cry: \u201cIf you ain\u2019t first, you\u2019re last.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The luncheon also included a fireside chat with Tim Smith, CEO of Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bancorp, which recently completed its acquisition of Dallas-based Comerica. All of its branding flipped to Fifth Third earlier this month.<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>Smith said he was surprised that no one had brought up the financial company\u2019s curious\u00a0\u2014 some might say awkward\u00a0\u2014 name.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a funny story behind that,\u201d Smith said. Fifth National Bank and Third National Bank merged in 1908 when prohibitionists were gaining popularity. The banks went with Fifth Third, he said, worried that Third Fifth might be construed as a reference to three-fifths of alcohol.<\/p>\n<p>The long goodbye<\/p>\n<p>Her departure, announced nearly six months ago, wasn\u2019t exactly unexpected by her fans\u00a0\u2014 more of a dreaded reality that came to roost.<\/p>\n<p>She feels she\u2019s accomplished what she set out to do when she became CEO.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>Under her tutelage, one of the nation\u2019s largest United Ways closed out its fiscal year in June with a record $68.2 million in revenue\u00a0\u2014 more than double what it was five years ago.<\/p>\n<p>In November, Sampson put on an over-the-chart 100th anniversary celebration for United Way at Fair Park and the Cotton Bowl that drew more than 30,000. It was spotlighted by a food and wine festival of local chefs and headline performances by Janet Jackson and Blake Shelton.<\/p>\n<p>She feels that the nonprofit is in solid financial condition with a strong team in place and ready for its next chapter.<\/p>\n<p>Never one to put things on repeat, Sampson felt it was time to hand over the reins and start her next adventure alongside Dallasite Lyndal Stephens Geth.<\/p>\n<p>New horizon, same purpose<\/p>\n<p>Its 51-year-old executive chairman created the foundation in 2024 to support Texas initiatives following the sale of her father\u2019s shale oil company for $26 billion. Forbes estimates the family\u2019s worth at $30 billion\u00a0\u2014 No. 37 on its just released America\u2019s richest list.<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a unique and incredibly exciting opportunity,\u201d Sampson said in an interview. \u201cLyndal chose to take what had been entrusted to her family and put it to work creating opportunity for others.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sampson said their core values of education, healthcare, alleviating hunger and expanding opportunities are intertwined. \u201cI believe deeply in her vision and what we can build together. My chapter is changing, but the purpose that has driven my life\u2019s work has not.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Terri West, who chairs the search committee, will only say that finding Sampson\u2019s successor \u201cis in progress.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sampson wrapped up the gathering with a tissue-dabbing swansong.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll of you have taught me that no one does anything important alone. And somewhere along the way, the lines blurred,\u201d she said. \u201cBoard members became friends. Donors became partners. Partners became champions. Colleagues became family.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are stitched together by shared experiences, tough moments and meaningful wins. And my life is much richer for it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jennifer Sampson, CEO of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas with Lyndal Stephens Greth (left) and Ashlee and Chris&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":442004,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[102,104,103],"class_list":["post-442003","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-headlines","tag-dallas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442003","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=442003"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442003\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/442004"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=442003"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=442003"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=442003"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}