OMG (Or “Old”MG)! Houston’s Jean Wilson Celebrates Her Birthday Like a Boss

By Liz Clearman

Don’t let anyone tell you — or Jean Wilson, for that matter — that birthdays aren’t still fun when you’re an adult. The sassy Houstonian celebrated her 69th (insert giggles here) birthday on May 6th at The Ballroom at Tanglewood and encouraged her guests to wear scandalous, sexy attire to commemorate the notable numbers. The theme centered around “naughty or nice,” which Jean left up to interpretation for each of the 150 attendees who packed the ballroom on Saturday night.

The guest list for the bash included the birthday gal’s former colleagues, family, and friends from her many philanthropic efforts, the Houston society scene, and the Asian community. Celebrities spotted at the shindig were Theresa Roemer (famous Houston socialite), Brian Wice (legal analyst for Channel 2), and Carmen Roe (legal analyst for Court TV). Thankfully, no legal analysts — or lawyers — were needed that evening for anything other than a good time.

Partygoers were treated to the sultry vocals of Stevie Nicks sound-alike Brooke Alyson and her Fleetwood Mac tribute band, Nightbird, in addition to the basspounding beats of DJ Freddy Batres. The highlight of the evening, according to the birthday girl, was “All the scandalous outfits and my friends having fun with the handcuffs and whips.” I think that says it all. Happy 69th, Jean!

What Is It and Why Is It Important?

By Liz Clearman

Juneteenth pops up on the calendar each year on June 19th (hence the name combining “June” and “19th”), and I’d venture to guess that most people are at least vaguely aware that it has something to do with slavery and emancipation. However, did you know that it officially marks the day — made a state holiday by Texas in 1979 and a national holiday by Biden in 2021 — when federal troops came to Galveston in 1865 to demand that all enslaved people be freed?

Two years prior, the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Abraham Lincoln, and two months before that, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia. Slavery continued to have a stronghold in Texas even after the Proclamation was signed, and many slave owners moved here to escape the Union presence during the Civil War because they knew no one would question their “activities.” The inhumane practice didn’t officially end in the Lone Star State until U.S. General Gordon Granger read the orders on Texas soil that stated: “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.”

Once the general read the orders, celebrations broke out amongst a quarter of a million newly freed Black people — and Juneteenth was unofficially born. In 1866, freedmen in Texas organized festivities on June 19th for what became an annual acknowledgement of those released from slavery, called Jubilee Day, and as Black people left Texas and settled in other parts of the country, the tradition followed and spread, culminating today in prayer services, barbecues, dancing, and music. In December of 1865, slavery was abolished nationwide with the enactment of the 13th Amendment of the Constitution.