White roses and hydrangeas sweetened the air as 400 guests arrived at the beautiful Belo Pavillion Monday night for The Orville and Esther Beth Rogers Scholarship Dinner with Keynote Speaker Gov. Mike Huckabee.

As Gov. Huckabee stressed the importance of Christian education, commending First Baptist Academy for their commitment to excellence, he also stressed that in these tough economic times it’s important, even biblical, for Christians to continue to give financial support to Christian entities that make an eternal difference, like First Baptist Academy and First Baptist Church Dallas.

Wrapped around the theme of the many benefits of Christian schools like First Baptist Academy were prayers and words of encouragement from U.S. District Judges Sidney Fitzwater and Sam Lindsay, Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert, Kim Askew, a nationally prominent partner of K&L Gates law firm, Fox News Channel Contributor Sandy Rios, First Baptist Dallas Senior Pastor Dr. Robert Jeffress, and the event's honorees, Bob and Jody Mow.

"The FBA faculty and staff encourage and teach our students, all the while witnessing to their spiritual development and modeling Christ-centered lives,” Bob Mow said, affirming and renewing the Mow’s 20+ year commitment to the school.

It has not yet been determined how much money the dinner raised for student scholarships, as the school continues to receive gifts, but the response has been overwhelming according to Susan Money, FBA’s director of admissions.

“First Baptist Academy is a tremendous asset to First Baptist Church Dallas and the Dallas community, as it continues to provide quality Christian education to our children,” Dr. Robert Jeffress said. “Both as a parent of an FBA student and as Pastor of First Baptist Church Dallas, it was an honor to be a part of this special evening as Gov. Mike Huckabee commended the work of First Baptist Academy and challenged us to invest our money in the things of eternity.”

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Sharon Gieger, senior news director and morning show news anchor for 90.9 KCBI Radio had the opportunity to talk with Gov. Huckabee Monday night. Click here to listen to the interview.