Outdoors-Loving Houstonians Toast the City’s Park System, Raise $600,000

Katy Anderson
Outdoors-Loving Houstonians Toast the City’s Park System, Raise $600,000

Event co-chairs Norma and Beto Cardenas

NOW THAT THE storms have rolled through and the weather is blissfully fall-like, this week will be the perfect time to enjoy one of Houston's many parks. An event last week celebrated how parks bring Houstonians together — especially when Covid is in our midst.


The Houston Parks Board's annual lunch took place under a tent on the Avenida de las Americas Plaza, overlooking Discovery Green. The nonprofit has spearheaded initiatives to improve air quality and the bayou system, and Board Chairman Barron Wallace spoke on the group's upcoming projects.

In an interview moderated by Texas Monthly editor Mimi Swartz, the luncheon's featured speaker, Florence Williams, author of The Nature Fix, discussed how spending time outdoors positively impacts peoples' emotional, mental and physical health.

The afternoon raised nearly $600,000 to further the Houston Park Board's efforts.

Phoebe and Bobby Tudor

Alisa Weldon, Laura Spanjian and Karla Cisneros

Debbie Elliot Griffith, Susan Bono and Ann Whitlock

Marie Louise and David Kinder

Lina Hidalgo

Lindsey Brown and Chris Shepherd

Janice Weaver and Shannon Buggs

Michael Moore and Kathryn Moore

Susan Christian, Kenneth Allen and Sis Johnson

Mimi Swartz, Florence Williams and Beth White

Parties

LOOKING FOR A great cheese pull this weekend? Besides the ones at the Rodeo, there are plenty of mouthwatering new menus to explore. Read on for this week's tastiest food news!

Keep Reading Show less
Food

Gerard O’Brien, Founder of Texas Entrepreneurial Summit

YOU HAVE BEEN successful with ORION Ambulance Services and various other business interests; how do you plan to diversify and potentially share your insights with others? A great deal of my excitement for this year comes from an opportunity to assist a crucial group of the Houston community: our local entrepreneurs. I believe that a key metric of the health of a region’s society is the success of local business owners. Consequently, I am forming the Texas Entrepreneurial Summit, a series of speaking seminars featuring myself and other entrepreneurs across a spectrum of industries. Together, we will offer new, or established, business owners glimpses of our own experiences through not only the uplifting aspects of being an entrepreneur, but also the treacheries of running a business. It will focus on the successes and failures we have experienced, as well as our strategies for confronting and overcoming relatable challenges throughout our careers.

Keep Reading Show less