James Dondero Announces $1 Million Challenge Grant from Highland Capital Management to Finish The Family Place's $16.5 Million Capital Campaign

DALLAS, Oct. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- James Dondero, co-founder and president of Highland Capital Management, L.P., announced this week that the firm has awarded a $1 million challenge grant to help The Family Place, Dallas' leading organization supporting victims of family violence, raise the final $2.8 million for its Legacy Campaign in the next six months. The announcement was made during The Family Place's 21^st Annual Texas Trailblazer Awards Luncheon at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, Texas.

The grant, administered through Highland Dallas Foundation, Inc., the philanthropic arm of Highland Capital Management, will match 50 percent of any funds raised for the capital campaign up to $1 million from now until April 4, 2017.

Since the October 4 announcement, The Family Place has already raised an additional $200,000 toward the Legacy Campaign, which will be matched with $100,000 thanks to Highland's grant. With $2.8 million needed to reach the campaign fundraising goal of $16.5 million, Highland's challenge grant ensures The Family Place finishes the campaign strong.

Dondero said the grant answers a call to action by Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings and Dallas Police Chief David Brown for the community to help solve this life-threatening issue in Dallas.

"The civic community in Dallas gets things done," Dondero said. "We at Highland Capital Management were impressed by the way The Family Place, through avid philanthropic support, took this concept from inception to the final stage of this campaign in just a year. We are proud to invest alongside many of the most generous and thoughtful in the community."

"For anyone considering this effort to provide lifesaving shelter and life-changing services to family violence victims, this is a tremendous opportunity to multiply the impact of their gift," said The Family Place CEO Paige Flink.

The Family Place Legacy Campaign supports the construction and operations of a new Central Dallas Counseling Center for family violence victims named in honor of Ann Moody. Designed by leading architecture and design firm Corgan, Ann Moody Place includes 13 emergency shelter bedrooms, a medical and dental clinic, a centralized hotline/call center, multiple private and group counseling rooms for children and adults, and multipurpose spaces for job-training.

The building will serve more than 2,000 victims annually providing critical emergency shelter space since The Family Place's existing emergency shelter already operates at capacity. Ann Moody Place will also house the agency's Be Project, which provides bullying and teen dating violence prevention education reaching more than 6,000 students each year. The facility will have an animal shelter for families who will not leave abusive relationships for fear of leaving behind beloved family pets. It will also provide an on-site child development center.

The continuum of care provided in this new facility—designed specifically for the delivery of services to family violence victims—is vital to saving lives.

ABOUT HIGHLAND CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, L.P.
Highland Capital Management, L.P. is an SEC-registered investment adviser which, together with its affiliates, has approximately $16 billion of assets under management. Founded in 1993 by Jim Dondero and Mark Okada, Highland is one of the largest and most experienced global alternative credit managers. The firm's diversified client base includes public pension plans, foundations, endowments, corporations, financial institutions, fund of funds, governments, and high net-worth individuals. Highland proudly invests in the work of local and national nonprofits through Highland Dallas Foundation, Inc., the firm's philanthropic arm. Highland Dallas Foundation, Inc. is a supporting organization of The Dallas Foundation. Highland is headquartered in Dallas, Texas and maintains offices in New York, Sao Paolo, Singapore, and Seoul. For more information visit www.highlandcapital.com.

ABOUT THE FAMILY PLACE
The Family Place is the largest family violence service provider in the state of Texas. The agency works to eliminate family violence through intervention and proactive prevention, extensive community education, and advocacy and assistance for victims and their families. Since 1978 The Family Place has counseled more than 225,000 clients, provided lifesaving shelter to more than 22,000 women, children and men, and answered more than 550,000 calls for help. The Family Place has helped more than 20,000 batterers learn how to change their abusive behavior. Its Be Project provides bullying and teen dating violence prevention education to more than 6,000 students each year. In 2016, The Family Place will open the first family violence shelter for men and their children in the state. All programs are provided in Spanish and English. For more information on The Family Place visit www.familyplace.org.

CONTACT:
Lucy Bannon
+1 (972) 419-6272
[email protected]

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SOURCE Highland Capital Management

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