October 27 DEF Benefit: A “Full House” for Annie Duke

100+ Attend “An Evening with Annie Duke: Good Decision Making and Other Life Lessons Learned from Poker”

DEF hosted “An Evening with Annie Duke” to introduce Annie, a champion professional poker player and our newest board member. Attendees were fascinated by the parallels Annie drew between poker strategy and life-shaping decisions. Throughout the room, people nodded their heads in agreement as Annie explained how poker concepts such as “sunk cost” and “all-in” related to a variety of life issues, from personal relationships to disciplining children.

Held at the Sheraton Palo Alto Hotel, the DEF event began with wine and hors d’oeuvres and ended with a dessert buffet. In between, Annie served up her own food for thought, challenging guests to apply her views on decision making in their own lives.

“Annie was both entertaining and thought-provoking,” said Nancy Kirwan, a marketing communications consultant. “It was valuable to realize how many of our decisions are reached without using sound reasoning.”

Annie expressed enthusiasm for the DEF mission and said she was eager to contribute ideas and energy as the foundation explores new techniques for capturing the interest of young people. As the mother of four, she is personally concerned with imparting decision skills to her own children and shared ways in which she is already doing this. “For example,” she said, “I don’t say, ‘Do this or you will be punished.’ I ask them to think about the alternatives.”

Annie is a great fit and a great asset for DEF. We’re delighted to welcome her aboard.