"The AZ Insider" with Kathy Shayna Shocket: Get the inside scoop on Arizona's social scene and celebrity news.

This week: Breaking news.. A well known bachelor in the Phoenix fundraising social scene is now engaged and more...

Commercial real estate entrepreneur Walt Brown Jr. who had previously dated some community high profiles, asked Addison McGrath to marry him this weekend. Yes, the 6’4” bachelor with movie star looks, popped the question during a romantic dinner at the Casa Palmero resort in Pebble Beach. In a private room, the majestic setting boasted red and white roses, chocolate covered strawberries, champagne, and a fire GLOWING in the fireplace.

I remember Walt GLOWING when he first met Addison. “Can’t wait for you to meet her,” he texted me when they first started dating. And then this recent call, “We’re ENGAGED,” he happily gushed.

The lovebirds are pictured above with Walt’s sister Helen Strader at last weekend’s Concours D’Elegance car auction in Pebble Beach. They met through Addison’s parents Jim and Lori McGrath who live in California and golfed with Walt at the Newport Beach Country Club. Walt, a principal of Diversified Partners, has a second home in Newport Beach. At least that took the edge off having to “meet the parents” for the first time tradition.

And Addison isn’t the only new lady in Walt’s life. Wait.. wait…wait before you jump to conclusions in this picture.. You see, when Walt proposed and asked Addison when she would be moving into his Paradise Valley abode, she replied, “when you buy me a puppy.” So…. Coco Chanel, the new lab puppy is now part of their family – joining Walt’s black lab Chamisa and ten- year old son Wally. Wally will be the couple’s best man at the small private ceremony planned for November. Congratulations!!!

Story continued. Click the next button below to read on.

Another Happy Couple

And Congratulations to newlyweds Judy Madura and Tom Kendra. Looks like fate had plans for this couple who first met in Phoenix, discovering they grew up a mile apart in their native Chicago! So the bond between the two and their families, with so much in common, was instant.

Judy, a very skilled nurse and senior clinical manager at Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center’s Wound Care Program and Tom, a medical dosimetrist (part of the radiation oncology team) at Scottsdale Healthcare, are pictured above at this weekend’s fundraising concert for Andrea’s Closet. They were among the many medical community professionals who turned out for jazz concert at Kerr Cultural Center in Scottsdale.

The jazzy evening of straight ahead jazz, blues, soul, funk and gospel, featured the Royce Murray Jazz Ensemble. And friends of jazz guitarist Mike Howard (who’s performed with Marvin Gaye, Donnie Hathaway and Peggy Lee and performed in the mini-TV series “Roots: The Next Generations” with Irene Cara) applauded Mike’s return to the stage.

Mike’s wife Debi, and his family and friends have been rallied around him for the last year and a half after he became seriously ill and diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma. The talented artist with a strong spirit underwent a miraculous stem cell transplant and also received a new prosthesis (as he lost his legs in his medical battle) is pictured above with his wife Debi and Barbara and Jack Kavanagh of the Arizona Myeloma Network (the 501c3 cancer charity helping Myeloma patients and families and also doing free cancer workshops and programs for all cancers, and currently the Navajo Nation at Ft. Defiance). Jack, a 17- year Myeloma survivor and his wife Barbara were instrumental in getting Mike immediate chemotherapy treatment and the stem cell transplant at Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale. One of the Myeloma Network’s next fundraisers will be Sept. 20 at the Diamondbacks vs. Rockies game)

Originally Mike was scheduled to play at Judy and Tom’s wedding. However that’s when Mike was still at recovering from the transplant. In Mike’s honor Judy and Tom had Mike’s CD playing at their wedding.

Andrea’s Closet is named for Andrea Brunk who lost her battle in 2002 to acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia just before her 10th birthday. The closets in over 30 Arizona hospitals are filled with toys and laptops for hospitalized children. Andrea’s parents, Traci and Kenny Brunk were also at the jazz concert.

Kathy Shayna Shocket is a Phoenix based writer. If you have a good item for The AZ Insider, you can email her at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .