28 Apr Inside the Dallas Runway Show That Doubles as a Lifeline for AIDS Services
Richard Rivas, Trustee of DIFFA Dallas, joins fellow board members Grant Farmer and Robyn Chauvin to reveal how a thirty-four-year-old fashion spectacle funds critical support for people living with HIV/AIDS across North Texas.
Eighty Models, One Rehearsal
Nearly two hundred looks will walk what may be the longest runway in Texas — past a two-story stage, through a room packed with dancers, singers, and performers — and the entire production gets exactly one run-through. Robyn Chauvin, the Creative Director & Producer, House of DIFFA, charged with orchestrating this year's House of DIFFA, put it plainly: "You sort of you you run through and you do the best you can, but at the end of the day, you're just hoping everything works out the way it's supposed to."
That blend of controlled chaos and spectacle is precisely the point. What began decades ago as a way to auction off designer jackets has evolved into something closer to a Broadway production, complete with elaborate costumes, oversized headpieces, and models who inhabit full-blown characters on the catwalk. Behind all of it sits a mission that has endured since 1984: raising money so that people living with HIV/AIDS in North Texas don't have to face the disease alone.
Born from a Group of Friends
Richard Rivas, DIFFA Dallas's Trustee, traced the organization's roots back to the height of the AIDS epidemic. "It started in New York, and so a group of friends got together to raise money for their friends because there wasn't enough funds for medication, housing, transportation to doctor's appointments," he explained. "So it started as a group of friends coming together. Since then, it's grown across the country."
The Dallas chapter launched that same year — 1984 — and has operated continuously ever since, now celebrating its thirty-fourth annual House of DIFFA gala. Rivas, who moved to Dallas from New York, found his way to the organization through corporate nonprofit work before eventually joining the board. All money raised stays in North Texas, funding what Rivas described as "non earmarked funds, and what that means is money that the government does not offer or cover." That translates to counseling, medication aid, gas money, and transportation — practical lifelines for more than twenty aid service organizations across the region.
From Auction to Broadway-Scale Spectacle
Chauvin now produces multiple events each year, but House of DIFFA stands apart. "This is really a show like no other," she told host Jeff Crilley. "This is really more akin to, like, a Broadway performance type thing. We have 80 something models. Nearly 200 looks will walk the runway." The show's costume-heavy aesthetic, she explained, is a deliberate tribute to the designers and artists who founded the organization while losing friends to AIDS. "It's really an ode to those people who originally created the whole thing."
Chauvin described giving models autonomy to build characters on the runway, a choice that feeds the room's energy. "I give them autonomy on the runway to create these characters, and then everybody just feels it because it's such an electric room," she said. That the entire apparatus — eighty-plus models, nearly two hundred looks, a two-story stage — hinges on a single rehearsal only adds to the live-wire quality that keeps audiences returning year after year.
Serving Those with No Safety Net
Farmer framed the organization's mission with striking directness. "We're serving the lowest and I don't mean that in the way that their values people, but in where they are in life," he said. "Many of us will never understand what that means to be in a place of there's no one here for you and as an organization to be able to give to others who have never felt that love, felt that appreciation, or felt that time from someone else."
Rivas added a detail he said many people overlook: "The money that we raise benefits men, women, and children. I think that's one thing that people don't realize." The scope of DIFFA Dallas's grantmaking — more than twenty organizations receiving non-earmarked funds for counseling, medication, and daily necessities — positions the annual gala as far more than a fashion event. It functions as a critical funding mechanism for services that government programs leave uncovered.
Dallas Creativity on Full Display
Chauvin connected the spectacle back to the city itself. "We're highlighting the best of Dallas, these incredible designers and creators and makeup artists and models and performers," she said. "I think it's such a great way to highlight what amazing things we have here in Dallas in our community and also to support a really important cause at the same time." The convergence of Dallas's creative community around a single cause — now entering its thirty-fourth year — reflects a durability that few charity galas can claim.
May 9 at the Sheraton
This year's House of DIFFA takes place May 9. Sponsorships, tables, and individual tickets remain available at difadallas.org. Farmer's closing words carried the simplest pitch: "To those out there who see this, I would a 100% say please be a part of this. If you can't this year, we would love to see you next year. And those who have, thank you. Thank you for your service. Thank you for what you've given."
Richard Rivas is Trustee of DIFFA Dallas, which leverages the design community's resources to fight HIV/AIDS across North Texas. He appeared alongside board member Grant Farmer and Creative Director & Producer, House of DIFFA Robyn Chauvin. Learn more at difadallas.org. This episode was recorded at the studios of The Jeff Crilley Show.
Key Topics
- the origins of DIFFA Dallas during the AIDS crisis
- House of DIFFA's Broadway-scale runway production
- non-earmarked funding for 20+ North Texas aid organizations
- producing 200 looks with only one rehearsal
- Grant Farmer's first year on the DIFFA board
- Robyn Chauvin's path from Neiman Marcus buyer to Creative Director & Producer, House of DIFFA
- how to attend or sponsor House of DIFFA
Episode Timestamps
- 01:23 – Jeff introduces the three guests behind House of DIFFA
- 01:54 – Richard Rivas explains DIFFA's 1984 origins during the AIDS epidemic
- 02:41 – Where the money goes: non-earmarked funds for 20+ organizations
- 03:07 – Grant Farmer on the board's mission to serve and grow
- 03:55 – Robyn Chauvin describes the show: 80 models, 200 looks, longest runway in Texas
- 05:04 – How the show evolved from jacket auctions to costume-heavy spectacle
- 05:56 – Only one run-through before showtime
- 09:24 – Grant Farmer's emotional call to action for those in need
- 10:56 – Richard Rivas closes with sponsorship and ticket info at diffadallas.org
Watch, Listen & Connect
Subscribe for more episodes!