United Way of Denton County Board of Directors to honor David & Carol Rowley with Dr. Bettye Myers Humanitarian Award at 14th annual UNITED Tribute.
The 2025 Dr. Bettye Myers Humanitarian Award will recognize David & Carol Rowley for their dedicated generosity in supporting the community with consistent giving to United Way since the 1960s. The prestigious award will be presented at our 14th annual UNITED Tribute gala celebration on Saturday, January 17, 2026.
The Rowley’s United Way relationship began in 1963 when David accepted his first job out of college as an engineer with Southwestern Bell in Houston. His first contribution was a payroll deduction from his first paycheck with the motivation to be supportive of his new employer.
“But it didn’t take me long to see the good United Way did,” explained David who also began volunteering with United Way-supported agencies.
Carol began her United Way-giving journey two years later with a small monthly payroll deduction from her teaching salary. “I remember thinking, ‘I hope this small amount can help someone,” recalled Carol.
The Rowleys moved around a lot with David’s telecommunications career – Houston, Beaumont, back to Houston, Dallas, Seattle, Atlanta, Concord (NH), back to Atlanta, and finally Irving (with a few more in between). “Between us we have 168 years of life experience and 13 residences,” joked Carol.
Carol’s career morphed with the various moves – teacher, tax prep service, real estate, wills and probate paralegal, CPA office, editorial assistant for a newspaper, and more.
And through the countless moves, the couple continued donating to the local United Way via payroll deduction to support the community where they lived.
In 1993 while in Irving, David retired from telecommunications but continued to work for a small manufacturing company based in Minnesota. At the end of that year, Carol read an article in the newspaper that United Way Dallas was short of their fundraising goal. Realizing their United Way contributions stopped with David’s departure from telecommunications, they calculated what they would’ve paid via payroll deduction and mailed a check.
The Rowleys continued to make annual contributions to United Way Dallas as independent donors until David and Carol moved to Denton in December 1997 and “decided we weren’t in Dallas anymore, so we switched our annual donation to Denton County in 1998.”
Over the next 28 years, the Rowleys never missed a year donating at a Leadership level ($1,000+) to United Way of Denton County. Their contributions total over $108,000 to support nonprofits and programs in Denton County, including Alexis de Tocqueville givers of $10,000/year starting in 2020.
“The consistency and dedication of David and Carol to supporting their community with their United Way giving is what we are thrilled to recognize with this year’s Humanitarian Award,” said Gary Henderson, President & CEO of United Way of Denton County. “Regardless of the season of life – whether just starting their careers right out of college, through multiple moves, and into retirement, the Rowley’s generosity never wavered.”
In addition to financial generosity, the Rowleys also gave their time volunteering with various programs and United Way-funded agencies through the years. It was serving as treasurer of one of these agencies at a time of financial turmoil that Carol saw firsthand the depth of the work of United Way of Denton County in their support role for the nonprofit community.
“United Way didn’t just write a check,” explained Carol. “They stepped in to help guide us to a solution to the problem. I saw United Way’s impact from the inside. It was a powerful thing they did.”
When asked about their sustained giving to United Way, David explained, “A lot of organizations need money. But you don’t know how it’s run. United Way helps a lot of people and a lot of organizations. I feel more confident my money will be used wisely, and I like that it’s local.”
“When something horrible happens, people swarm to it – that’s human nature,” added Carol. “United Way represents something else: a hope to be able to congregate together enough resources to make a difference in local people’s lives.”
The Dr. Bettye Myers Humanitarian Award was established by the United Way of Denton County board of directors in 2012 to recognize the highest level of community leadership and philanthropy with time and resources. Recipients of this prestigious award are purposeful in promoting human welfare and have demonstrated active engagement in the community. Learn more about previous honorees>>