Men of Distinction Lunch Marks Anniversary and Fundraising Milestone — $5.5 Mil for the Med Center!

Priscilla Dickson
Men of Distinction Lunch Marks Anniversary and Fundraising Milestone — $5.5 Mil for the Med Center!

Hallie Vanderhider, Stephen Lewis, Anne Neeson and Molly Crownover

THE SOCIAL BOOK’S 15th Men of Distinction luncheon, which raises money for pediatric research in the Texas Medical Center, added four more to its list of philanthropic gentlemen who make Houston a better place — bringing the total to 60 over the course of the event’s history.


Portraits of each honoree, taken by Gittings, were displayed on a photo wall in the ballroom of the River Oaks Country Club, where the lunch was held. Chair Tracy Dieterich and emcee Tom Koch welcomed guests and introduced the afternoon’s honorees, Stanley Appel, John Butler, Jr., Keith Mosing and Jim Postl.

They also introduced the recipients of three $100,000 grants for medical research: Allison Speer (UTHealth), Alessandro Grattoni and Osama Gaber (Houston Methodist), and Michael Belfort and Sundef Keswani (Texas Children’s and Baylor College of Medicine).

The Men of Distinction event has provided more than $5.5 million in grants over the course of the last 15 years. Cheers to that!

Beverly Postl and honoree Jim Postl

Dr. Bud Frazier, Regina Rogers and Dr. John Cangelosi

Honoree John Butler, Jr. and David Wuthrich

Honoree Keith Mosing, Alice Mosing and Tony Bradfield

Jeff Morgan and Chairman Tracy Dieterich

Jesse Tutor and Honorable Bill King

Leila Perrin and Sandra Porter

Jim Crownover, Molly Crownover and Scott Evans

Thurmon and Lilly Andress

Tony Bradfield, Dr. Devinder Bhatia and Walter Aymen

Parties
Leadership in Action: John Kuykendall Traded Newcaster Dream for Success in Luxury Retail

John Kuykendall, Showroom Manager, Sub-Zero, Wolf and Cove

How did you get to where you are today? Growing up I had envisioned myself as a news anchor, living in NY and enthusiastically saying into the camera “Good Morning America!”. To this day, I am still a news/political junkie. My mother owned fur salons so specialty retail, luxury retail was in my blood through the family business. Eventually, mom shuttered the stores and I was recruited to a large specialty retailer. Over the next 30 years, I was in commissioned sales on the sales floor, became a department manager, worked my way up to buyer and store manager. Although I never became a newscaster, I did live in NYC for a few years. But Texas is home and with aging grandparents, I felt the pull to come back to my roots. A headhunter approached me. I never envisioned myself in the high-end appliance market, but there are so many similarities. Clients want a memorable experience; whether shopping for diamonds and fur or remodeling their kitchen.

Keep Reading Show less

A WINE-TASTING rendezvous at the Post Oak Hotel benefited a heartwarming charity — to the tune of $410,000!

Keep Reading Show less

Outside The Kennedy (photo by Tarick Foteh)

A RESTAURANT OFFERING “refined, classic cuisine in an elevated, cocktail-lounge experience to Montrose and River Oaks” has opened where Montrose meets River Oaks.

Keep Reading Show less
Food+Travel