Tanglewood/River Oaks Buzz - June 2023

Class of ’58: Lamar Reunion

Houston

Dog Parks

Viva Fiesta!

First Fishing Experiences

Chef’s Corner:

Benchawan Painter

Class of 2023

Travel Buzz:

Greenland

by

Summer Reading:

Uplifting Books

Cindy Gabriel: Hitting

the Family Lottery

Caroline Martinez

Caroline Siegfried

EDITOR’S NOTE

This issue showcases our annual “Where Are They Headed?” feature on graduating high school seniors. When we launched this feature in 2013, students often dropped off hard copies of their kindergarten photos in a white envelope for our designer to scan. Today’s seniors were born into a digital world. Their childhood photos have been captured digitally from the day they were born, making it easier for parents to capture all those little moments. It is simpler for us, too, but I always enjoyed meeting the students rushing in at deadline to submit those photos. I wonder how many will use ChatGPT to submit their stories next year? Ugh. Not ready for this changing world. But you know who is? The Class of ’23. Also in this issue, meet 1958 Lamar grads who reflect on just how much the world has changed since they graduated. Spoiler alert: A lot has changed, but one thing that’s remained is their friendships. Congratulations, Class of 2023, and thank you to the members of the Class of 1958 who shared memories with us. joni@thebuzzmagazines.com

THE BUZZ MAGAZINES

Editor-in-Chief

Joni Hoffman

Publisher Michael Hoffman

Editor Jordan Magaziner Steinfeld

Editorial Assistant Caroline Siegfried

Design Manager John Duboise

Staff Writers Tracy L. Barnett

Sharon Albert Brier

Cindy Burnett

Andria Frankfort Dilling

Angie Frederickson

Todd Freed

Cindy Gabriel

Cathy Gordon

Michelle Groogan

Dai Huynh

Annie Blaylock McQueen

Jennifer Oakley

Cheryl Ursin

Account Managers Andrea Blitzer

Leslie Little

Jo Rogers

Your letters, thoughts, opinions

From LEGO experts

We appreciate you for writing about the Buchmans and sharing their story with both us and your community [Pop Art: Jason Buchman inspires, brick by brick, by Jennifer Oakley, May 2023]! It's so wonderful how they've built so many memories together as a family with LEGO bricks. Their use of our products as furniture and decor is amazing and it’s opened my mind to the endless remodeling possibilities with LEGO bricks! We’re also so glad that they’ve shared their hobby and donated LEGO tables to those in need in their community.

LEGO Company Limited, United Kingdom

Editor’s note: We are delighted that this story is inspiring those in our communities and even those across the pond!

Soccer goals

Our family totally enjoyed reading the article titled Grace Yochum: Reaching Goals [May 2023] in The Buzz Magazines. A big shout-out to Todd Freed for capturing all the details and telling her story from YMCA club soccer to Oklahoma State to the NWSL draft. We make it a point to recommend your magazine to our friends and business associates. It’s a terrific place to advertise for coverage in Buzz neighborhoods!

A quick update on Grace since the article was published. After a great deal of thought and prayer, Grace elected not to go pro because of challenges with migraines and light sensitivity, due to shoulder and neck issues from all the years of headers. However, she is working in the soccer program at OSU. That is the happy ending for her, because she also always wanted to be part of a Power Five school given her long-standing goal of coaching.

Mary Kent and John Yochum

Editor’s note: Thank you for the kind feedback and for the update on Grace’s career. We are excited to hear she has further achieved personal and professional goals.

Author and hero

Thanks to Cathy Gordon for sharing about one of our own local writing heroes [Pearls of Positivity: An author’s gift to children, May 2023]. From floods to flower-eating cows, Ellen Leventhal's stories continue to inspire a new generation of young readers and writers. Thank you for sharing this important story.

Gabrielle Nidus

Extra, extra

Last summer, I had the experience of interning at The Buzz Magazines. I received hands-on experience, learning to research and write news stories. Every day was unique. One day we were interviewing families at Evelyn’s Park, and the next we were commuting to The Health Museum for the showing of a new exhibit.

Since my time at The Buzz, I became a correspondent for the School Buzz blog (thebuzzmagazines.com/columns/school-buzz), and I was able to write stories based on what is going on in my school community at Incarnate Word Academy. One of the articles I wrote was about an event my school hosted during the 2022 World Series. Since we are located next to Minute Maid Park, we decorated the sidewalks with chalk to show our support for the Houston Astros. The story was published on School Buzz, and I sent my article to the Lone Star Writing Contest. I received second place in all of Texas in the small school division!

Next year, I am thrilled to be continuing my studies at the University of Texas at Austin, majoring in journalism. My time as an intern at The Buzz allowed me to discover a passion for journalism and news reporting. I have everyone to thank at The Buzz for believing in me and inspiring me to continue writing.

Anna Galan

Editor’s note: Anna, we are so proud of you and know your future is very bright!

Send letters to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Please include your name, address, phone number and email address for verification purposes. Letters are subject to editing for clarity and space. Views expressed in letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Buzz Magazines, and The Buzz takes no responsibility for the content and opinions expressed in them.

If this sounds like you or someone you know, please contact us at info@thebuzzmagazines.com or 713.668.4157, ext 102.

by Cindy Gabriel, staff writer

UnBridaled Gratitude

Hitting the family lottery

One of the joys of writing is you get to make up the rules as you go. That’s a rule I just made up in order to (A) show off my fake (spray) tan in a picture that makes me look better than I actually look. And (B) take a break from my Not a Memoir series, where I seem to be stuck at 4 years of age in 1958 Fort Bend County.

My sister-in-law Aimee Ehrenkranz McCrory (who, at 72, actually does look that good) and I are seen here claiming front row seats for the latest Ehrenkranz wedding. My man, Stan, who is Aimee’s brother, was about to walk his lovely daughter Jenny down the aisle to marry Jason Presley under clear blue skies, oceanside, near Puerto Vallarta, Mexico on April 1, no fooling.

This was not my first Jewish wedding, but it was my first time to feel it from inside the immediate Jewish family as one not raised Jewish. Early on the day of the wedding, Stan went to Jenny’s room to deliver his tallit (or prayer shawl) from his Bar Mitzvah at age 13. It would be draped across the chuppah (or canopy) hovering over Jenny, Jason, and Rabbi Scott Weiss during the ceremony.

That morning, in exchange for the tallit, Jenny handed an envelope to her father. Inside was a handwritten letter, three pages, front and back. I was honored to be in the room with Stan as he read it slowly, savoring the words, reading bits and pieces to me as tears ebbed and flowed. Jenny’s words seemed refreshingly unrehearsed, tumbling onto the page with honest, humble, specific expressions of unbridled gratitude. In the end, he was always there for her, she said. Always. Her Rock, she called him.

True as those words hit me, I have never heard Stan described as a rock. It’s not exactly an image he cultivates. I always think of him as a happy-go-lucky jokester who teases everybody he likes. But I guess it’s possible to be a rock and a jokester at the same time.

I was drawn to Stan Ehrenkranz the first time I met him. When he told me he had three sisters, who were all very close, and all live in Houston, the plot thickened. Of course, my thoughts were mostly about me. Would they meet me, then get together and analyze me, tear

me apart, then accept or reject me piece by piece?

Here’s how I feel five years later. Close families like the Ehrenkranzes survive by not taking themselves too seriously. Everybody’s quirky. Everybody talks and laughs about it. Now that they know me, they talk and laugh about my ditzy side, like welcome to the club.

It brings out the competitor in me. You think you’re dysfunctional, listen to what I just did, or thought, or said, or most commonly, lost or forgot. They never pretend I’m faultless, they laugh and agree. Yep, that’s you!

These women –Aimee, Heather, and Mindy – are far too interesting to be described on this one page. They are deserving of a novel, a Jewish version of Little Women I need another life to write it.

Aimee tells her own story through her camera lens and goes out of her way to help me tell mine whenever I need a picture for a story. We recently traipsed all over Fort Bend County looking for landmark hints of my past life. After a morning of shooting, Aimee said, “I’m starving.”

Then, magically, like a mirage in a desert, there it was, Larry’s Mexican Restaurant, where I took my first bite of Mexican food in 1960. Dad loved Larry. Both men are gone now, but Larry lives on through his family-run restaurant that still has the original front door. Aimee and I left that day feeling sister-bonded and full of Larry’s Mexican food.

Full. That’s how Stan said he felt after reading Jenny’s letter on her wedding day. He sat back as if he’d finished a whole plate of enchiladas

and black beans. But this kind of fullness added nothing to his waistline, just perhaps a little time to his lifespan.

All we had thought about before was his suit, his tie and shoes for his big moment, walking Jenny down the aisle. It pales in comparison to a father with a full heart. As the couple stood under the chuppah, beneath Stan’s tallit, blowing in the breeze, I pictured 13-year-old Stan, flanked by his parents, Henry and Marion on the day of his Bar Mitzvah. Henry and Marion are no longer with us, but their DNA remains on that tallit, swaying like a veil between earth and sky.

In a world so bent on change, I’m anxious to grab on to the things that remain, like words of love and truths embedded in ancient stories and traditions that survive through the ages, including places like Larry’s Mexican Restaurant.

FAMILY TIES Sisters-in-law Aimee Ehrenkranz McCrory and Cindy Gabriel just before Stan-the-Man walked daughter Jenny down the aisle in the latest Ehrenkranz wedding. The photo was taken by brother-in-law Bob Westendarp (Heather’s husband).

by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

Dog Parks in Houston

Where pups can play

Owning a dog can bring people together, and for one couple, Jenna and Shalin Patel, a chance visit to a dog park changed their lives.

On September 25, 2013, two weeks after Jenna moved to Houston from Pensacola, Fla. for her new job, she decided to take her rescue dog, a Sheltie named Piper, to Danny Jackson Family Bark Park. She knew just one person in Houston at the time, so she was in the market to make new friends.

While at the dog park, she says she noticed Piper solely playing with the same little white dog. “I noticed her owner standing off to the side by himself,” said Jenna. “He kept shouting her name as if she were being bothersome to my dog.” Jenna and Shalin struck up a conversation over his dog’s name, Whiskey.

Whiskey was Shalin’s first dog he ever owned. “When he [moved from India], he knew he wanted a dog and adopted Whiskey, a lab/corgi mix, from the local Houston dog rescue group, PupSquad. She was found in a box outside of Home Depot,” said Jenna.

Jenna and Shalin stayed in touch after that chance meeting and eventually started dating and became engaged in 2016. They had engagement photos taken with Whiskey and Piper at the dog park. They are now married with two children. Piper passed away a year ago, but the couple still has Whiskey, who is 10 now. They continue to take Whiskey to Danny Jackson or their second favorite, Congressman Bill Archer Dog Park.

In honor of our many Buzz readers who love their dogs, we decided to make a list of favorite local dog parks, especially in time for those dog days of summer.

Houston Dog Parks

Houston is home to many great dog parks where you and your furry companion can enjoy the outdoors and socialize with other dogs and their owners. Always be a responsible dog owner and remember the Houston Parks and Recreation Department’s leash law. Dogs are not allowed, even with a leash, in children’s play areas, or on organized athletic fields.

Congressman Bill Archer Dog Park

3201 Hwy 6 North

Open daily, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.

This 17-acre park, located north of I-10, has split sides for large dogs and small dogs. There is a pond for dogs to swim, agility courses, walking trails, a gazebo that provides shade for owners, plenty of parking, and a dog-washing station to clean off your pooch before heading home.

Tanglewood Bark Park

5801 Woodway Dr.

Open daily, 8 a.m.-7:30 p.m.

Tanglewood Bark Park is in the Tanglewood area, and in addition to a dog park, Tanglewood Park offers tennis courts, a playground, and sports fields. It has a fenced green space with a gazebo, and benches to sit. Small and large dogs play together at this park.

Johnny Steele Dog Park

2929 Allen Pkwy.

Open daily, 7 a.m.-8 p.m.

Buffalo Bayou has a dog park with a lot of great features including a large, off-leash area for dogs to run and play, separate areas for small dogs and large dogs, a water fountain, and several benches for owners to relax and watch their canines play.

Danny Jackson Family Bark Park

4828 ½ Loop Central Dr.

Open daily, 5 a.m.-10 p.m.

This dog park is in the southwest part of Houston and features a large area with a pond for dogs to swim in. There are also separate areas for small dogs and large dogs. The park has several shaded areas and a dog washing station for after a swim. No children under age 12 are allowed.

Millie Bush Dog Park

16101 Westheimer Pkwy.

Open daily 7 a.m.-7 p.m.

This dog park is in the northwest part of Houston and features a large area with several obstacles for dogs to play on. There are separate areas for small dogs and large dogs. The park has a walking trail and a dog shower.

Maxey Park Bark and Run Dog Park

601 Maxey Rd.

Open daily, dawn to dusk.

This 13-acre park features a dog park with a pond for dogs to swim in and a dog run area. There are separate areas for small dogs and large dogs. The park has several shaded areas and benches for owners, plus a dog shower.

Levy Park Dog Park

3801 Eastside St.

Open 24 hours

Levy Park is in the Upper Kirby area and features a small, off-leash area for dogs with a large dog side and a small dog side. There are shaded areas and a playground, splash pad, familyfriendly activities, and benches to relax on.

Ervan Chew Dog Park

4502 Dunlavy St.

Open daily, 6 a.m.-9 p.m.

In 1994, Ervan Chew became the first neighborhood park in Houston to allow dogs to legally run off-leash in a designated dog area. It is a small pocket park with a dedicated space that serves residents as a dog park, with an adjacent picnic area too.

Discovery Green Dog Run

1500 McKinney St.

Open daily, 6 a.m.-11 p.m.

Discovery Green is a fun downtown spot for the whole family. The dog portion of the park features the Kinder Large Dog Run and the Harriet and Joe Foster Small Dog Run. The areas around the dog park have crushed gravel, fountains, and of bench seating. Dogs must remain with their owners and leashed outside of the dog runs.

MEANT TO BE Shalin and Jenna Patel (pictured in 2016 with their rescue dogs Whiskey and Piper) met at the Danny Jackson Family Bark Park two weeks after Jenna moved to Houston for a new job. They are now married with two children.

by Andria Frankfort Dilling, staff writer

Fiesta

Best week of their lives

Imagine all of Houston going into party mode for one week, with events and parades popping up in all corners celebrating the city we love. Throw in some Texas history and Mexican culture, kings, queens, dukes and duchesses, and a slew of women in yellow dresses making sure traditions are at the forefront of it all. Multiply that vision, add endless, colorful papel picado garlands and bright paper flowers, and you’ll have a pared-down idea of San Antonio during its annual Fiesta.

It started in 1891, with a parade of horsedrawn carriages organized by a group of San Antonio women honoring the memory of the men who fought for Texas’ independence. To reenact the battle, they threw flowers at each other outside the Alamo.

Hence, the Battle of Flowers Association was formed (those are the above-mentioned women dressed in yellow), and today a new generation of women in yellow mobilizes a dazzling Battle of Flowers Parade that snakes through the city and is second only in size to the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, Calif. From that beginning, Fiesta has emerged as a week-long, heavy-hitting celebration of all things San Antonio.

Superlatives abound: The Battle of Flowers Parade is the only parade of its size that is produced entirely by women volunteers; the Fiesta Flambeau Parade is the largest illuminated night parade in the country; there’s a four-night Night in Old San Antonio (NIOSA) street festival that is the largest historic conservation fundraising event in the country; and the Battle of Flowers Band Festival is the oldest marching band festival in the country.

This April, three Houston families – the McFarlands, the McGreevys, and the Roberts –found themselves in the center of the party. Their daughters, Judy Roberts, a recent college graduate, and Arabella McFarland and Molly McGreevy about to graduate (they now have done so), were duchesses in the Court of the Magic of Morocco (this year’s theme) chosen by the San Antonio men’s organization The Order of the Alamo, whose queen reigns over Fiesta.

Jackie McGreevy met her husband Connelly, who works at Goldman Sachs, in San Antonio when they were both young college graduates.

A couple of years ago, San Antonio friends (the husband is a member of The Order of the Alamo) asked the McGreevys if they would be interested in participating in the 2023 Fiesta. “Connelly and Molly and I sat on the back patio and talked about it and made the decision together.” It’s a commitment of time and finances. “We all had to be on board if we were going to do it.”

Once the decision was made that the answer would be “yes” if they were asked, “We got the call,” Jackie says. “We were super excited, but I had never been to a coronation, so it was a little bit of the unknown.” Which turned out to be just fine.

“Oh my gosh,” Jackie says. “It exceeded all my expectations.” For a week, there were several parties a day, parades, and an over-the-top coronation held at the historic Majestic Theatre. “Every time we did something else, I was like, ‘That was the best part!’ The parade is so crazy fun and cool. The coronation is magnificent. I mean, when your kid’s in it, that’s fun. But even if not, it’s magnificent.” For her part, Molly says it was the best week of her life.

Gretchen McFarland agrees. “Best week of our lives,” she says. Gretchen, a designer, and her husband Andrew, an architectural designer, had been to Fiesta before, although their daughter Arabella had not. “I’m a Texan and have an affinity for San Antonio and its people and culture,” Gretchen says. “I love that Fiesta is so

unique. It’s hard to find another event like it where the whole city comes together to celebrate for a week. It was an honor to be asked to participate as an outsider.

“Our best friends are from San Antonio and are Fiesta veterans many times over,” Gretchen says. “We had been a couple of times to celebrate our friends’ daughters, and we jumped at the chance to do it.”

She continues: “The pageantry of the coronation is pretty spectacular, like something from another era. It’s in this old theatre [the Majestic Theatre], and it involves so many people in the community. There’s just not much like that around anymore. I was blown away by the whole experience.”

Because Judy Roberts is a preschool teacher in Austin, she had to plan ahead (read: take off from work) to attend dress fittings and bow practices in San Antonio. “The commitment was worth it all,” she says. Judy’s sister Hailey had participated in Fiesta in 2020, so she had an idea how the week would unfold. She describes it as “the most fun week I’ve ever had in my life.” Judy’s parents are Sissy and Grady Roberts; Grady, who works in real estate, grew up in San Antonio, and Judy said “he was super excited” about the family’s Fiesta involvement. “I only knew two or three of the whole group,” Judy says of the 24 duchesses and their escorts. “But you have to make friends with them because you’re

SPECTACULAR Arabella McFarland is presented as a duchess at the 2023 Fiesta coronation in San Antonio with her escort, Jackson Tyng Scroggie.

with them for a straight week. It was so fun getting to know them.”

Judy is also sure to praise all the volunteers, dress designers, and others who organize the many details of Fiesta: “They were amazing,” she says. “They just made it super special. Such a dream come true.”

Immediately following their nonstop week,

the McFarlands and the McGreevys had to gear up for UT graduation. Exciting as it was, the pace wasn’t easy. “After the coronation,” Jackie says, “all the kids get bussed over to the Alamo at midnight to take a picture, and then they all change into sweatpants and stay up until sunrise. Gretchen kept telling me, ‘If you do Fiesta right,

we have to stay up until sunrise.’ So we just stayed up all night long with the kids. I’m still kind of slap-happy.”

As they say in San Antonio, Viva Fiesta!

Editor’s note: Mark your calendar for Fiesta San Antonio 2024, April 18-28. See fiestasanantonio.org.

VIVA! (Clockwise, from top left photo): Molly McGreevy does her Texas bow at the coronation with escort Travis Swanson; Arabella shows her cowboy boots to onlookers at the Battle of Flowers Parade; Molly and friends; all the duchesses' trains from above; Molly in her crown; Judy Roberts with her grandmother, Barbie Roberts, and father Grady Roberts; Judy Roberts’ friends await her arrival in the Battle of Flowers Parade.

by Andria Frankfort Dilling, staff writer

Like No Time Had Passed

Sixty-five years after Lamar graduation

As Carole Stevens Mattingly thinks about her 65th Lamar High School reunion, she’s quiet for a minute (an unusual state for the engaging, talkative Carole).

“I am kind of just overcome with emotion about it,” she says. “I don’t know that there are a lot of people out there who go all the way to their 65th reunion.” She stops to think for another minute. “Well, I just think it’s pretty special to make it this far.”

Such was the sentiment for some 100 classmates and spouses who attended the reunion in April, a month after Lamar celebrated its 85th year with a big open house complete with food trucks, school tours, and dance, cheer, and choir performances. When they graduated, the class of ’58 had 563 students.

Gus Comiskey Jr., founder of Comiskey Kaufman Consulting, has been heading up the tight-knit class’s reunions since they began with their 10th in 1968. “Way back in 1967, they just called some of us to come to a meeting,” Carole remembers. “It was a weekend, and I was pregnant. Some of the people were good friends, some weren’t.”

But through many reunions and even more planning meetings, they’ve all become friends. “If we didn’t know each other in high school, it doesn’t matter,” Carole says. To help her old classmates out when they began planning their 60th reunion, Carole says she blew up a picture of herself from the yearbook and wore it to a meeting on a ribbon around her neck. “Some people you saw around school, but you never really knew. And some people will remember your young face, but your old one won’t register,” she laughs.

After the 60th there was a little uncertainty about counting on a 65th. “When we had the wrapup meeting,” Carole says, “everyone started talking and saying, ‘Well, what do y’all think? Do we try to have a 65th?’ Then somebody said, ‘How many of you have parents who lived to their 90s or 100?’ I raised my hand, and several others did, and we said there’s our committee for the next one!”

Held at The Forest Club and followed by a tour of Lamar High School, the “next one” was a big success. “It’s a wonderful feeling to be

able to renew old friendships,” says Ron Woliver, a petrochemical consultant and president of the class of ’58. “There was one fella I played football with. Then, of course, there were people I had gone to elementary school with, ladies and guys. There were several I went all the way through with. To put that whole thing together was really wonderful.”

Ron continues: “Julie Hodges [one of 16 members of the planning committee] has to get a huge, big, triple star for putting together a reunion for hundreds of people to show up to,” he says. “It was extremely well done, and an event I will never forget. I’m so glad I was there to see it. Time is moving on.”

Gus Comiskey adds emphatically: “Having a 65th reunion is an indication of long-term friendships.”

Those friendships extend beyond reunions and between the milestone five-year markers.

David Redford, a Lamar ’58 graduate and an attorney, sends reminder emails to a group of classmates for monthly get-togethers. “We go to

Memorial Park and Becks Prime, and we’ll gather there,” Ron says. “There might be six of us, might be 12. We’ll come and go, but it’s a way to continue to meet together and dialogue with our old friends. Being with guys like David, and Jack Whitten, and Gus Comiskey, being around these super-achiever people helps those of us who aren’t super-achievers,” Ron quips.

Looking back on his time at Lamar, Ron is grateful. “Lamar High School was a turning point of positivity in my life,” he says. “My mother and father divorced when I was very young. My Lamar counselor, Mrs. Goodrich, played a tremendously important role in my life. She asked me if I had heard of Georgia Tech. The long and short of that story is that she pointed me in that direction, I got into the school with a scholarship, and it turned out to be a great way for me to get away from the war in my family. That was the war between the Aggies and the Longhorns.”

Classmate Eleanor Powers Beebe also praises the

PLANNERS The Lamar High School Class of 1958 reunion committee: (Top row, from left) Ron Woliver, Anne Wendler Schwinger, Kathy Sangster, Gus Comiskey; (bottom row, from left) Jo Ann Dougall Levering, Judy Tucker Earle, Julie Shaw Hodges, Carole Stevens Mattingly, and Eleanor Powers Beebe.

teachers and staff. “We had very, very, very fine teachers,” she remembers. “This was a time when women had basically three choices – you could be a nurse, you could be a teacher, or you could be a secretary. We had a captive audience of women teachers who today would be bankers or CEOs, but they were teachers, and they were good.”

Eleanor was one of many – 30, maybe – classmates who went on to Rice University. She became a French teacher and then stayed at home to raise her children. “A very high percentage of our class went on to college,” Carole says. “Now this is 1958. A lot of people from that generation, their parents did not go to college. So for many of these kids, they were the first generation to go.”

Jo Ann Dougall Levering says that because of Lamar, “I was able to attend Duke University and go on to be one of two women in a class of

400 men at The University of Texas Law School. And the girl friends I made at Lamar are still close friends, 65 years later.” Jo Ann adds that she has been a part of her class reunion committees since “day one,” for their 10th. She sat out of the planning sessions this year because of failing eyesight.

Julie Shaw Hodges specifically remembers her favorite English teacher, Evelyn Ford. “I loved her class,” Julie says. “She always told us how hard the English language was and that someday she was going to write her own dictionary! When my first husband died 30 years after my graduation, one of the first phone calls I received was from Mrs. Ford. We had not kept in touch, but somehow she remembered me, made the connection, and called me – personally.”

Julie says her carpool group remained the same from River Oaks Elementary through

Lamar. “Believe it or not, we still meet for lunch every few months,” she says of Ann Rendleman Mather, Martha Smith Smith, Roberta Williams Terrell, Mary Lib Iiams, and herself. “Mary Lib died years ago,” Julie says, “but the rest of us meet quite frequently.”

“It always seemed to me that there were a lot of very successful leaders who came out of Lamar,” Eleanor says. “Our former mayor Fred Hofheinz, Governor Mark White, a city attorney, there was a Miss Texas, Marilyn Turner, who was a straight-A student.” David Redford is quick to remember Mark White as their “most famous classmate,” who eventually became, in David’s opinion, “the best education governor in Texas history.”

Looking back,” Eleanor says, “what strikes me is how many organiza- (continued on page 16)

HIGH SCHOOL MEMORIES From the 1958 Lamar Orenda: (Clockwise, from top left) Tawasi Booster Club members Eleanor Powers, Melanie Feeny, Helen Barners, Camilla Gramp, and Pat Faulkner; Lamar "Redskin" cheerleaders Charles Giraud, Mary Sue Hanks, Chris Brown, Anne Allen, Ann Craig, and Gus Komiskey gather around the Big Chief mascot; "Most Representative Girl" Kathy Sangster; Senior class officers Kathy Sangster, Chris Brown, Mary Sue Hanks, Ron Woliver, with Ron's signature (Ronnie Woliver) in Carole Stevens' yearbook; "Most Representative Boy" Gus Comiskey.

(continued from page 15)

tions there were on campus. Everybody had something. Everybody was secretary of this, president of that. There were clubs for the writers, a debate club, a drama club led by Ruth Denney, who later went on to start HSPVA and basically discovered Tommy Tune [a Lamar graduate of the same generation]. We had the singing groups Choralettes and Lamar Lears, astronomy club, I could go on and on. We had social service clubs, a lot like sororities, and we had so many formal dinner dances at the country clubs. We had dances all the time. We had hayrides, we had barn dances, there was something to go to every week. We did a lot of dancing.

“It was a happy time. We did have the atomic bomb over our heads, but aside from that, people were busy, and people in the community reported on you if you misbehaved. Oh, if you misbehaved, they knew it, and the teachers would call your parents. In loco parentis.”

Eleanor takes pause as she remembers the school being segregated. “We were not even

aware of how hurtful that was,” she says. “We were not aware of what we were doing, that we were doing damage to someone.”

The times were a mix of highs and lows. “We were not at war, but we did have the civil rights movement, which was very difficult,” Carole says. “But we [also] grew up in a really fun time. Our generation created rock and roll.”

Carole has fond memories of lunches with Eleanor and their friend Kathy Sangster, all still dear friends. “I can remember sitting outside under the trees having lunch,” Carole says. “Back then, we had these full, gathered skirts, and we wore petticoats made of crinoline underneath, and you starched them. Some people had really stiff petticoats – I guess their mothers knew how to do it up! But we would arrange those skirts in a circle around us so we could sit on the lawn under the trees. We were on the only street in Houston with a country club at both ends of the street.”

Carole also remembers leaving campus was off limits. “We weren’t supposed to go to the River

Oaks Drugstore, but they sold cokes there. Once in a while, some brave soul would say Okay, give me your money and I’ll go get some cokes. You were very spottable on that walk across Westheimer. I wasn’t about to take that chance, but I did give money to people who did!”

Everyone was full of stories at the reunion. “Seeing everyone was really fun,” Eleanor says. “I stood in the food line with a couple I knew. Both of them went to Lamar; they were high school sweethearts. I had good memories of being in our trig class with her. And then a girl I carpooled with, now our husbands are good friends and we’ve happened to keep up that way. The people who stayed in Houston, I run into them quite a bit.

“We’re just happy to be here,” she adds. “We are so blessed to have good health and to see our friends in good health. I don’t think we ever thought we’d live this long, but people are still hiking, I’m still playing tennis, others are traveling the world. It’s just a wonderful group of people.”

TOGETHER AGAIN Scenes from the April 2023 reunion: (Clockwise, from top left) Monroe Luther shakes hands with J.C. Whitten; Julie Shaw Hodges and John Patton look at a class photo; Charles Giraud holds up a copy of a Lamar Lancer article; Eleanor Powers Beebe, Kathy Sangster, Carole Stevens Mattingly, and Gail Adler chat; Kathy Sangster holds up a copy of The Lamar Lancer

Katy Anderson Photography

Katy Anderson Photography

Katy Anderson Photography

Katy Anderson Photography

Katy Anderson Photography

by Caroline Siegfried, staff writer

Class of 2023

Where are they headed?

The class of 2023 is one that feels a bit surreal – post-pandemic, these seniors have experienced virtual and in-person school. Their teen years took place in constantly shifting chaos. They grew up in the midst of it. And even though we’re on the other side of Covid-19, the world feels like it’s still changing at a rapid-fire pace. No one carries cash anymore. Low-rise jeans are back in style. Most couples I know met on a dating app and subscribe to around seven streaming services (and that’s a low estimate).

The modern world has started to feel a bit Matrix-y: we’ve been infiltrated with artificial intelligence bots and cryptocurrency. Some tech guy in Silicon Valley is likely trying to invent a hologram to replace me right now; but somehow, I’m certain that one thing will remain unchanged: the human desire for connection, to hear each other’s stories. These pages are full of well-rounded young people who love to learn. I hope that reading these little snippets about this year’s seniors bring you a little comfort – the more things change, the more things stay the same. Every year, seniors tell us that teachers have changed their lives, that they love their friends deeply, that they are grateful to be a part of their community.

Our annual tradition here at The Buzz is to share our graduating neighbors’ future plans. As they leave the nest and transform from adorable kiddos to high school graduates, we celebrate their achievements. Read on to see what they wish they had known as kindergarteners, what they’re looking forward to in the next chapter of their lives, and more. You did it, y’all – congrats. Cheers to the class of 2023!

Vaughn Sternberg – River Oaks Elementary School, Lanier Middle School, Lamar High School

Vaughn Sternberg is headed to Southern Methodist University to study Finance at the Cox School of Business. She’d tell her kindergarten self: always stay true to yourself and you can achieve anything. The teacher who changed her life was her kindergarten teacher, Mr. William Ponder at River Oaks Elementary. He was always uplifting and made her love school.

Her dream job would be working in real estate development, and her favorite moment from high school was helping host a Thanksgiving food drive with Lamar Student Council.

Caroline Martinez – Second Baptist School

Caroline Martinez is headed to Texas A&M to study Biomedical Science. She is looking forward to the Aggie culture, being around likeminded people who share similar aspirations, and being able to venture from a small campus size to a larger environment. Her dream job is to be a dermatologist. The most influential teacher she had was Mrs. Caroline Knapp, who taught her sixth-grade Bible class. Her favorite moment from high school was watching the Varsity baseball team take home the State Championship title. She also enjoyed cheering on the sidelines with her fellow Varsity cheerleaders Junior year and making it to the State Championship game. She would tell her kindergarten self: “Have confidence in everything you do, be adventurous and get involved in everything you can!”

Natalie Hampton – West University Elementary School, Pin Oak Middle School, Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts

Natalie Hampton is headed to Stanford University. She is looking forward to the freedom to explore more interests and take a range of classes as she decides her major. She would tell her kindergarten self to enjoy nap time while it lasts. She says that Kerri Coffman Fujiwara, her 7th-grade science teacher at Pin Oak, taught her the value of hard work and the value of intellectual curiosity – without learning those values, she wouldn't be where she is today. Her dream job is to be a novelist. Her favorite moment from high school was returning to school after being online for a year. Coming back to an actual classroom with her friends made her realize how much she enjoyed learning and being surrounded by her peers.

Jaslin Martinez –

J.W Oates

Elementary, Holland Middle School, Lamar High School

Jaslin Martinez is off to Baylor University to major in Biology on the Pre-Med track. Her dream job is to become a Cardiothoracic Surgeon, so she can help people and make sure that they live their healthiest lives. She’d tell her kindergarten self, “Hard work pays off. Work hard for what you want and never give up no matter how many hardships come your way.” One teacher that changed her life was Breana Chatman, her 8thgrade Math teacher. She pushed Jaslin as a student and reminded her once you got to high school it was a clean slate, and that there will be hardships in the road, but you have to fight to accomplish your goals. After working hard throughout high school, that hard work paid off and she got a merit scholarship to Baylor, her dream school.

Nicole Hampton – West University Elementary School, Pin Oak Middle School, The Emery/Weiner School

Nicole Hampton is heading to Northwestern University to take part in their Mathematical Methods for the Social Sciences program. She would tell her kindergarten self: don’t be afraid. She explains, “I spent a lot of my childhood being scared of trying new things, meeting new people, and pretty much anything including the word ‘new.’ All this did was limit me.” As she got older, she realized that she became happier and more successful when she learned to deal with that fear. One of the teachers who changed her life was her third-grade teacher Mrs. Alyce McLamb at WUES – “Even when I was a young kid who dreaded school, she was the first one to instill a love of learning, making anything from calculation to memorization fun.” One of her favorite memories was the visual art

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Vaughn Sternberg – Southern Methodist University

Kennedy Brown '23 from Second Baptist

Caroline Martinez – Texas A&M

Jaslin Martinez – Baylor University

Natalie Hampton – Stanford University

Nicole Hampton – Northwestern University

Preston Igo – Texas Christian University

Evie Vu – Rice University

Austin Little – Tulane University

Benjamin Perkins – Wesleyan University

Tiffiny Gist

Marlo Wise

Marlo Wise

Tiffiny Gist

Deborah Alexander

show at the end of the year. Nicole wants to continue helping and working with nonprofits regardless of her career path.

Preston Igo – Briargrove Elementary School, Second Baptist School

Preston Igo is headed to Texas Christian University to study Business Finance/Real Estate. His dream job is to do real estate development on a large scale. He would tell his kindergarten self to never be afraid to make new friends. His favorite moments from high school were Saturday nights hanging with the guys. A teacher who changed his life was Mr. Geoffrey Brooks, his AP Physics Teacher senior year. Mr. Brooks made him think more deeply, and become much more curious, about everything.

Evie Vu – St. John’s School

Evie Vu is off to Rice University for Business. If she could give her kindergarten self one piece of advice, it would be: try to find joy in everything you do. The teacher who changed her life was her kindergarten teacher Donna Palmer: “Ms. Palmer taught me many things – poetry, algebra, and kindness – and I will always remember her for it.” Evie’s dream job is being a CEO. Her favorite moment from high school was her senior skip day when she and her friends went to Galveston.

Austin Little – West University Elementary School, Pin Oak Middle School, St. John’s School

Austin Little is going to Tulane University for Business. He’d tell his kindergarten self, “Stay true to who you are.” He says that Mr. Erol Turk, his junior year physics teacher, exemplified what it means to be optimistic and persevere through adversity. “Aside from being a wonderful teacher, he served as a role model to me and my peers each and every day. His good humor and amiability were contagious, and he touched the lives of everyone who had the pleasure of knowing him.” His dream job would be working as general manager of an MLB organization, and his favorite part of high school was the spring break baseball trips to Florida.

Benjamin Perkins – St. John's School

Benjamin Perkins is headed to Wesleyan University to study Neuroscience and Behavior. The teacher that had the most impact on him was Ms. Paula Angus at St John's, who helped him further his interest in neuroscience and taught him how to read scientific articles. His dream job is to be an orthopedic surgeon.

Samuel Ireland – Second Baptist School

Samuel Ireland is heading to the Colorado School of Mines for Engineering. His favorite moment was being on the stage for Guys and Dolls his senior year. His most memorable teacher was Mrs. Cindy Blades, his theater teacher during all four years of high school, who has given him a lot of advice and influenced

who he is today. He would tell his kindergarten self to make the most of every opportunity, and put your time into things you want to do.

Ethan Jett – The Imani School, The Kinkaid School

Ethan Jett is heading to Tufts University with a major in Economics and a minor in Entrepreneurship. He would probably tell his kindergarten self to relax and enjoy the moment, because time flies, and next thing you know you’ll be graduating high school. He says Mr. Morris, his 3rd-grade teacher, made a huge impact on him by teaching him the importance of taking pride in your work, and how to carry himself as a young man. He is looking forward to playing soccer at Tufts and living in Boston. Ethan has dreamed of playing soccer at the collegiate level since starting high school, and committing to Tufts made that dream come true.

Josh Collins – Second Baptist School

Josh Collins is going to Texas A&M for their Business Honors program. If he could give his kindergarten self one piece of advice, it would be: don't be afraid of being yourself; love where you are at in life while always trying to grow. He is looking forward to the freedom, community, and independence associated with college. Mr. Jacob Lindsey, his English teacher and Model UN sponsor, had the most impact on him. He inspired a passion for learning and making a difference in the community. He was always passionate about everything he talked about and was involved in. Josh’s dream job would be to be the president of the United States, and his favorite moment from high school was being the stage manager senior year for Guys & Dolls.

Andrew Wuensch – Grace School, Second Baptist School

Andrew Wuensch is going to Baylor University to major in Business Marketing. He’d

tell his kindergarten self to continue to work hard, and that you can do anything you put your mind to. His most impactful teacher was Mr. Arthur Babcock, who taught him Anatomy & Physiology and Biology. He showed him the benefits of a strong work ethic and aided his spiritual growth. He hopes to one day have a job in business marketing that will allow him to use what he has learned in Anatomy & Physiology. He says special moments in high school were frequent, as he and his friends spent many late nights around a fire pit talking through their ups and downs.

Lou Hughes – Bonnie Holland Elementary, Beckendorff Junior High School, Second Baptist School

Lou Hughes is going to study Mechanical Engineering at Southern Arkansas University. His dream job is to be an architect. His favorite moment from high school was his senior retreat, and he says he will always cherish the special bonding with his classmates before they started senior year together. One teacher who impacted him was Ms. Gretchen Hollier, his fifth-grade teacher. In fifth grade, he was making As in all his classes except English. She told him she knew she could do better in his class, and spent time before and after school until he was acing English. That year, Lou went on to win the President’s Award, signed by President Obama. He’d tell his kindergarten self, “Don’t be shy to meet new people. The people you don’t meet could end up being someone you need in your life.”

Caroline Marshall – Second Baptist School

Caroline Marshall is going to Baylor University to major in Health Science Studies. Her dream job is to become an OBGYN. If she could give her kindergarten self one piece of advice, she would tell her to take a deep breath, take one day at a time, and cherish the moments that life brings. Caroline says that Ms. Angela King, who taught her history, economics, and AP government, changed her

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Samuel Ireland – Colorado School of Mines

CharleneReddy Photography

Ethan Jett – Tufts University

Josh Collins – Texas A&M

Andrew Wuensch – Baylor University

Lou Hughes – Southern Arkansas University

Caroline Marshall – Baylor University

Connor Kuenstle – Lehigh University

Alyssa Wall – Northeastern University

Corah Blair – Texas A&M University College Station

Prudence Alwien

Marlo Wise

Jenny Antill

Marlo Wise

CADY Photography

Natural Expressions

Tanya Rollins

life by teaching her that it was okay to learn in a different way than her classmates, and by pushing her to be a better student and all-around person. Her favorite high school memory was the last football game, which she says “was such a bittersweet moment, but also the start of a new season of life.”

Connor Kuenstle – St Thomas’ Episcopal School, Episcopal High School

Connor Kuenstle is headed to Lehigh University for Finance. He’d tell his kindergarten self to enjoy recess and snack time while you can. He hopes to one day own his own business and work for himself while making a difference for others. Connor says he’s been blessed with several teachers who made an impact in his life, including Ms. Nguyet Pham, his senior year calculus teacher. Ms. Pham always went above and beyond in her role as a teacher to be encouraging, helpful, and patient. His favorite high school memory was when, after losing at SPC boys soccer junior year, the team got focused, worked hard and earned an SPC championship as seniors – “It was an unforgettable moment and I’m so grateful for it.”

Alyssa Wall – Holy Spirit Episcopal School, St. Mark’s Episcopal School, Episcopal High School

Alyssa Wall is heading to Northeastern University for International Business. She would tell her kindergarten self, “Be open to change because it is inevitable, and be grateful for what you have because most things in life are temporary, but that does not mean that they aren’t beautiful or won’t have a profound impact on your life.” Mr. Garhett Wagers, her middle school headmaster at St. Mark’s Episcopal School, changed her life by making her live up to her full potential, and be unafraid to speak her mind and tell her story – no matter how hard it may be. Alyssa’s favorite moment from high school was giving a speech in front of the entire school in chapel and receiving a standing ovation.

Corah Blair – Westwood Elementary, Friendswood Junior High, Episcopal High School

Corah Blair is headed to Texas A&M University College Station to major in Allied Health. If she could give her kindergarten self one piece of advice, it would be, “Work hard, play hard! Embrace being different. Enjoy the journey!” She says that being one of the only Jewish students in her school community was challenging at times, but it shaped her into the confident person she is today. Her favorite teacher of all time was Mr. Matthew Gammons, who taught music class at Westwood Elementary. Her dream job is helping people and animals. She is planning to continue her education in veterinary or nursing school. As the youngest of three sisters, Corah has had to be patient and wait her turn – now it’s finally her time to fly!

Catherine Favoriti – St Anne Catholic School, Pershing Middle School, Lamar High School

Catherine Favoriti is headed to The University of Texas at Austin to major in Anthropology. She says that without Mrs. Rebecca Retzloff, her 11th-grade anatomy/physiology teacher, she would not have discovered her passion for anthropology. If she could give her kindergarten self one piece of advice, it would be, “Don’t let anyone stop you from following your dreams. If you want something in life, don’t let anyone else prevent you from pursuing it.” She is looking forward to making lifelong friends, experiencing college life, and pursuing her music career. She hopes to be a singer/songwriter and music performer. Her favorite moment from high school was the day she got accepted into her dream college, UT Austin.

Isabella Hu – River Oaks Elementary School, Lanier Middle School, Lamar High School

Isabella Hu is headed to The University of Texas at Austin to study Biology on the PreMedical Track. Her 11th-grade biology teacher, Ms. Katie Watson at Lamar High School, truly opened her eyes to the excitement of biology, and helped her solidify her aspirations to study science in college. Her dream job is being a pediatrician; “it combines my love of science with my passion for service towards children.” Her favorite high school memory was this year’s Lamar versus Bellaire football game.

Claudia Moiset Planas – Mártires de Angola (CU), Reemberto Abad Alemán Primary School (Guayos, CU), Lamar High School

Claudia Moiset Planas is going to DePauw University to major in International Studies. A teacher that changed her life was Mr. Raul Rivera Colon, who was her sophomore World History teacher when the pandemic started. She says his warm and calm way of teaching despite the situation made it even easier for the class to engage, participate, and enjoy their time learning together. Her dream job is to become an international dermatologist/doctor. She wants to be able to identify skin problems and offer people the best options to cure them internationally. Her favorite part of high school was her senior year, especially the Lamar tradition “Senior Sunrise.”

Carlin Elizabeth McQueen – St. Mary's Catholic School, Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School, Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts

Carlin Elizabeth McQueen is off to Loyola Marymount University to major in Dance and Computer Science. She is looking forward to being able to dance throughout the city of Los Angeles, and she is excited to show the city what she has to offer. She would tell her kindergarten self, “Continue to trust and believe in yourself. Everything happens for a reason.” Her dream job is to dance commercial-

ly for artists throughout the world. Once she feels her dance career has come to an end, she would like to find a way to combine dance and computer science to bring more attention towards the arts. A teacher that changed her life is Mrs. Leah Cessna, who believed in her at times she felt that she was crashing. Her favorite moment from high school was fall and spring dance showcases, where she says everyone uplifted and supported each other; “It's really exciting to showcase your talent to the ones that you love most.”

Kayla Pearl – King David Primary School Sandton (ZA), Lanier Middle School, Lamar High School

Kayla Pearl is going to The University of Texas at Austin to major in Political Science. If she could talk to her kindergarten self, she would say, “being happy with myself and with my life is more important than being perfect, getting the best grades or having the largest social circle. I would tell my younger self to find what she is passionate about and to pursue it proudly.” Her 11th-grade language and literature teacher, Dr. Usha Gurumurthy, changed her life by reigniting her passion for literature, and having faith in her throughout her high school journey. Her favorite moment from high school was publishing her first issue as Editor-in-Chief of the Lamar Life Magazine. Her dream job is to be a human rights lawyer, traveling around the country and world to help those who cannot defend themselves in the face of adversity or hardship.

Jones Mays II – Challenger Elementary, Sablatura Middle School, Carnegie Vanguard High School

Jones Mays is headed to the University of Southern California with a Merit Trustee Scholarship to study Arts, Technology, and the Business of Innovation at the Iovine Young Academy. He says that Ms. Julea Brode at Carnegie changed his life by making learning math easy and fun. He looks forward to taking surfing classes on the California coast, and meeting new people who will push him to reach his future career goals. If he could give his kindergarten self one piece of advice, he would say not to worry about life so much, since everything works out in the end. Meeting peers that challenged him to be a better person both intellectually and socially was the highlight of his high school career. Jones aspires to be an entrepreneur or software architect who works on platforms that connect communities and solve pressing problems

Hagar Cohen – Herod Elementary School, Pin Oak Middle School, Carnegie Vanguard High School

Hagar Cohen is headed to Southwestern University with a major in English. She’d tell her kindergarten self, “being kind and empathetic almost always outweighs being right or successful.” She is looking

(continued on page 24)

Ling Wang Photography

Catherine Favoriti – The University of Texas at Austin

Isabella Hu – The University of Texas at Austin

Claudia Moiset Planas – DePauw University

Carlin Elizabeth McQueen – Loyola Marymount University

Kayla Pearl – The University of Texas at Austin

Jones Mays II – University of Southern California

Hagar Cohen – Southwestern University

Maya Friedberg – Middlebury College

Lifetouch-

Prestige Portraits

Hagit Bibi Photography

Omar Auzenne

Bhav In Bliss

forward to meeting new people with similar interests and becoming a part of a tight-knit and accepting community. She’ll always remember her fifth-grade math teacher, Ms. Pamela Hinsey, who fostered her love for reading books. Ms. Hinsey recommended many books that were impactful in her life, and always made time to sit and teach her the material in a way that made sense. Her dream job is to be a speech language pathologist.

Maya Friedberg – Beth Yeshurun Day School, Lanier Middle School, The Emery/Weiner School

Maya Friedberg is off to Middlebury College after a gap semester volunteering in Tanzania. Maya would tell her kindergarten self, “it’s okay to be uncomfortable sometimes – the best memories are a result of uncomfortable situations!”

She’s looking forward to volunteering in Tanzania, and meeting different people from all walks of life at Middlebury. Maya says the teacher who changed her life was Spanish teacher and capstone mentor Mrs. Tanya Meinecke-Smith, because she cares about her students and encouraged Maya to pursue whatever made her happy. Her dream is to be involved in non-profit leadership abroad, and her favorite high school memory was when she led the ninth graders on their trip to Big Bend.

Shira Alatin – Kolter Elementary School, Lanier Middle School, The Emery/Weiner School

Shira Alatin is headed to a Young Judaea Year Course, studying Marketing. She’d tell her kindergarten self to enjoy your time while you’re here, because time moves faster than expected. Shira’s favorite moment from high school was a spring trip junior year where their class went to a restaurant with a live band; after half an hour, their whole grade was dancing and singing along. Shira says that Mrs. Tanya Meinecke Smith from The Emery/Weiner School is a teacher she will remember for the rest of her life. “Mrs. Meinecke has been my biggest supporter and cheerleader since the day she met me. She is so passionate about teaching and about every one of her students which is so evident through her close relationships with all her students.”

Willa Berry – Beth Yeshurun Day School, Trafton Academy, The Emery/Weiner School, Colorado Rocky Mountain School

Willa Berry is headed to the University of Alabama on the Pre-Med track. After being away from home at the Colorado Rocky Mountain Boarding School since sophomore year, she’s most looking forward to being back with her brothers at Alabama and learning about pre-medical studies in depth. Her favorite teacher was Mr. AO Forbes, her soccer coach and teacher at school in Colorado. She says he always had something insightful to say, and gave her great advice.

Willa’s favorite moment from high school is meeting one of her best friends, and having her as a roommate for three years. Her dream job is to one day become a successful doctor.

Max Kerkvliet – American School of Doha, The Village School

Max Kerkvliet is headed to the University of Connecticut to major in Business and play on the UConn soccer team. His ideal career is being a professional soccer player. He would tell his kindergarten self that everything happens for a reason. His life was influenced by his coach, Scoop Stanisic, who coached him in soccer his 11th-grade year. He says, “Coach Scoop taught me that nothing is going to come to me easy, the only way to get what I want is to work hard.” His favorite moment from high school was winning a state soccer championship with his team in 11th grade.

Elisabet Brandsberg-Dahl – The Fay School, The Awty International School

Elisabet Brandsberg-Dahl is off to St. Olaf College to major in Psychology or Biology. Elisabet would tell her kindergarten self, “Sleep in and play as much as you can. Take advantage of being a child without responsibilities.” She was most impacted by her fifth-grade teacher Mrs. Emma Peterson, who created an environment that was nurturing and kind, and prepared her for a new school. Elisabet says, “I don't think I would be the same person without her, and being a part of her class is still one of my fondest memories.” Her favorite moment from high school was the Awty Connects field trip to Alaska. She says it was definitely one of the best experiences she’s had, and that she loved “the snow, the Iditarod dogs, and learning about the ongoing effect climate change is having on our world.”

Andy Walsh – The Post Oak School

Andy Walsh is headed to The University of Oklahoma to major in Business/Finance. As a kid, Andy spent a lot of time watching Rescue Heroes and CHiPs with his dad, and would beg his mom to follow the flashing lights of fire trucks. Years later, he still admires first responders and serves alongside them in his role as a volunteer Firefighter/EMT at Southside Place Fire Department. He would tell his younger self that "Fire trucks are every bit as cool as you think they are" and to follow those flashing lights! He is grateful for his middle school advisor Jenna Pel; he says that she was different from him in nearly every way, but taught him so much about managing his time, communicating well with others, and being a strong leader. His favorite high school memory was when he was given permission to take one month off school to pursue his Wilderness First Responder and EMT certification in Lander, Wyoming with the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS). He looks forward to finding a career that will help him be of service to his community.

Leon Hoang – The Post Oak School

Leon Hoang is headed to Tulane University to major in English and Finance. Leon says he was “a very mischievous kindergartener” and recalls when families gathered to help the class garden outside. They spent hours planting trees and flowers. The next day, he convinced his classmates to uproot and clear the plants for more playing space outside. When the teacher found out, he was forced to replant the whole garden. His advice to his past self would be to embrace and learn from these mistakes – and not to repeat them. He says he is forever grateful for his fourth-grade teacher Mrs. Maya Pinto, who changed his outlook on life. She told him he had talent and shouldn’t waste it – he sees now that she was right. Leon says he is looking forward to the freedom of being a young adult away from his loved ones and parents; “although I will miss them all, I want to see who I can be as an independent person in this new world.”

Joshua Chin – Bunker Hill Elementary, Westchester Middle School, First Baptist Academy, Houston Christian High School

Joshua Chin is headed to The College of William and Mary to study Political Science and Psychology. The most influential teacher he has had was Ms. Jenna LaFlamme, his sophomore English teacher. He says, “She taught me to love writing and how to care about people for where they are; taking time to understand someone as a person.” He would tell his kindergarten self, “Be yourself, and don't forget you are so loved and special!” His favorite moment from high school was getting to spend little moments with his favorite people, and making memories that he can take to college.

Presley Houck – Mark Twain Elementary School, Pershing Middle School, St. Agnes Academy

Presley Houck is headed to Tulane University to major in Anthropology on the track for Pre-Medical Studies. Presley would tell her kindergarten self to invest her birthday money in Netflix. She is looking forward to exploring a new city, new experiences, new friends, and hosting her lifelong friends in NOLA when they visit. She says her fifth-grade teacher at Mark Twain, Ms. Jennifer Dennis, gave her class the gift of teaching to their strengths, and going outside of the normal curriculum when they were ready for more. She is also grateful to her English teacher Tim Nesser at St. Agnes, who helped her to realize she loved English as much as science and math. Her dream job is to be a neurosurgeon. She has so many favorite moments from high school, but says, really, “every moment spent with my friends and supporting each other at sports/dance/music/art etc. events and cheering each other on.”

MORE ONLINE

See thebuzzmagazines.com for more graduating seniors.

Shira Alatin – Young Judaea Year Course

Willa Berry – University of Alabama

Max Kerkvliet – University of Connecticut

Elisabet Brandsberg-Dahl – St. Olaf College

Andy Walsh – The University of Oklahoma

Leon Hoang – Tulane University

Joshua Chin – The College of William and Mary

Presley Houck – Tulane University

Angela Ann Photography

Chris Dunn

Meredith Symonds

. by Sharon Albert Brier, staff writer

Rumor Has It

Spring fiesta. The tables, decorated with colorful tablecloths and maracas, created a festive atmosphere for residents on Tangle Lane at Marilyn and Ben Rosenthal’s home. The impressive margarita machine that Mo Cordes provided was busy with thirsty neighbors. Alisa Johnson and Liz Andrews co-chaired the festive party with their posse, Michele Hosko, Sharon Cordes, and Sally Salners. Fajitas, chiles, and churros made for a jalapeño hot time.

From desert to icebergs. One had recovered from an injured hockey knee and one from a ski leg injury, but they hiked six to ten miles a day, sometimes in 14,000 ft elevation. The two-week trip to Chile (Patagonia and Atacama desert) fascinated Lili Rubin and Dennis Langlois when they saw a hot springs oasis in the middle of the desert and another day, a stunning field of icebergs. They stayed, wined and dined at five-star Explora resorts organized by Michael Bluestone Just when they were chilled out, an immigration strike blocked their return to the airport, and they had to walk with their luggage past the trucks blocking their way onto another van. They had survived much more!

Bold and vibrant. You don’t have to wear a unibrow to emulate Frida Kahlo. Ellen Grodjesk (with faux monkey Diego) and Heather Prowse dressed the part with flowered headbands and colorful outfits at the 18th annual Frida Festival at MECA, a Latino based multi-disciplinary and multicultural community organization that presented a variety of arts. The booths sold food, everything Frida, and crafts. There were free drinks and lots of giveaways. Maps were given out as the festival was spread out in several areas inside and outside. Lively music made for a great background. Frida would have been passionate about it.

Girls on the Run. Pink attire and tennis shoes were de rigueur. While champagne and bites were passed around, patrons bid on the silent auction items and posed by two photo opp drops to show off their blinged-out or high heel tennies. Emcee Courtney Zavala made introductions and auctioneer Alex Nance had the guests on their feet flipping a coin for prizes. In the crowd were Amy Ditta, Mary Mayo, Molly Glowacki, and Nathalie Kosman. The program builds inner

strength in girls from 3rd to 8th grade while engaging in sports and team building.

It was a sentimental trip. Sara Ostrosky took her dad (87 years old), Jose Woloski, to experience once more where they had lived in Israel with new ventures during Israel’s 75th anniversary. They rented a car and visited friends and family as they drove from Nahariyya and Haifa in the north to Tel Aviv, Kfar Saba, Ramat Gan, Ramat Aviv, and Rehovot in the south.

They saw the Palmach experiential museum in Tel Aviv covering the Palmach legacy through the stories of individuals and groups of young Palmach recruits from its establishment until the end of the War of Independence. Another highlight was the top of Mount Olive, a holy prayer site associated with Islam, Judaism, and Christianity since the days of the First Temple. They said a special blessing for Rosa Woloski, Sara’s mom who passed in 2022. Upon the return they both got Covid, but they had a lot of good memories to relive while in quarantine.

They raised a million dollars! Reflections on Style, Cirque du SAWA (Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary) lunch and Couture Runway Show chaired by Kristy Liedtke and Mary Maxey was sold out in one day to 500 patrons. They wanted first dibs on the designer pieces offered in the sale afterwards. Sponsors that donated new items for the four-day sale included A Bientot, Tribute Goods, Briargrove Pharmacy, Caruggi’s, and Woody’s. There were over 157 racks of clothes and displays on the first day and three racks on the last day. The Chic Boutique Gold Co-Chairs, Rhonda Jones and Pam

Sengelmann and Chic Boutique Showroom Chairs, Mikki Donnelly and Maryann Gerity, applauded the honoree Ann Roff and her husband Hugh, for their stupendous work in the community.

Happy news! Covid attendance numbers are out the door and the Children’s Museum Houston attendance is over the top. The Museum’s Annual Meeting and Celebration was held at Rob and Maggie Vermillion’s home to give awards and welcome the new CEO Rayanne Darensbourg. President Jason Endecott welcomed the crowd of 50 before Carolyn Watson presented Laurie Allen with the Hillary Farish Stratton Award for Best Volunteer and Adam Drutz presented Tiffany Espinosa the Lois Drutz Boiarsky Award for Best Employee. Keith Ostfeld was recognized for his 20 years of dedicated service. Business concluded and everyone was free to play.

MORE ONLINE

See Rumor Has It at thebuzzmagazines.com for additional photos. Have some good news to share? Email us at info@thebuzzmagazines.com.

MARGARITAS AND MERRIMENT The committee for the Tangle Lane Spring Fiesta included (from left) Liz Andrews, Sally Salners, Michele Hosko, and Sharon Cordes.

KIDS

. by

Annie Blaylock McQueen,

Buzz Baby

staff writer

First time fishing

Buzz Baby is a column about life with little ones. Writer Annie McQueen is a mother of four children under the age of 8.

Houston is an urban city with lots of fun and family-friendly outdoor activities at our fingertips, including great beginner fishing spots around town.

This month, in honor of Father’s Day and celebrating all the great dads and father figures out there, we thought we would explore the world of taking a young child fishing in our very own backyard.

Fishing is a great way to learn patience, bond with your child, and gain an appreciation for the outdoors. We created a guide to Houston fishing spots, and some tips to remember, too.

It is vital to bring the right gear such as a youth fishing pole, which can be found at Bass Pro Shop or on Amazon. They are smaller and easier for a small child to hold. Be sure to pack sunscreen, bug spray, water, a hat, and an extra change of clothes. A youth-sized life jacket is important to remember for added safety.

Dad-of-two Jared Taylor has risen early on weekend mornings to take his two daughters fishing around Houston from when they were toddlers (they are now 6 and 8). He says he prefers before sunrise when the city is still quiet. “It’s a great little escape into nature yet only 20 minutes away,” said Jared.

Jared says he brings options for the girls to use for their fishing bait. “I usually rotate through a handful of options trying to see where the fish are biting,” he said. His go-to is a Texas-rigged 5” watermelon Senko.

“If I see some decent topwater hits, I will go with a small rooster tail and keep it close to the surface,” he said. “I set the girls up with a weighted grub and crappie bait and a bobber so they can watch for bites,” said Jared.

This technique allows the girls to avoid casting their fishing lines over and over, explained Jared. “It is pretty fun to see their excitement when the bobber dips below the surface,” said Jared. They use a catch-and-release method.

A preferred spot on their list is Brazos Bend State Park. Visitors tend to go to search for alligator sightings, but Jared says he enjoys taking

the girls to fish for Largemouth Bass. “It is a great outing for the whole family and also good to support the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department,” said Jared.

Jared says catching the fish is a memorable moment for the kids, but it is more about the experience that counts. “Where you go is not as important as how often,” said Jared. “I used to fish all the time with my dad. It is special getting to share that with my girls.”

Some other great Houston fishing spots include:

Tom Bass Regional Park Section III

15108 Cullen Blvd.

Tom Bass Park has two fishing lakes, Tom Bass I and Tom Bass II, stocked with catfish, bass, and other species. There are several fishing piers and a boat ramp, making it easy for kids to fish from the shore or a boat. Additionally, the park has picnic areas, a playground, and walking trails.

Sheldon Lake State Park and Environmental Learning Center

14140 Garrett Rd.

Sheldon Lake State Park has a 120-acre lake that's perfect for fishing for kids of any age, starting young. The lake is stocked with different kinds of fish, and there are several fishing piers and a boat ramp. The park also has a nature center, hiking trails, picnic spots, and an area to paddle boat.

Mary Jo Peckham Park

5597 Gardenia Ln.

Mary Jo Peckham Park is in Katy, about 30 minutes west of downtown. This park has it all for kids of all ages – including a lake stocked with catfish, bass, and perch, several fishing piers, and a boat ramp for small boats. The park also has a great playground, splash pad, picnic areas, and a Recreation Center with restrooms.

Herman Brown Park

400 Mercury Dr.

Herman Brown Park sits in north Houston

and has a lake that is stocked with different varieties of fish. The park also has a softball field, a picnic area, walking trails, and a playground.

Lake Houston Wilderness Park

25840 FM 1485

Lake Houston Wilderness Park is a lush, 5,000-acre park that offers plenty of space for hours of outdoor activities. The lake is stocked with fish. There are also 20 miles of trails, and spots for activities outside of fishing including kayaking, birding, mountain biking, and more.

Brazos Bend State Park

21901 Farm to Market Rd. 762

This expansive park has more to it than just fishing, with 37 miles of trails, some of which are wheelchair friendly. Visitors can shorefish or fish off the pier. The park has three lakes for fishing –Hale, Forty Acre, and New Horseshoe Lake.

Buffalo Run Park

1122 Buffalo Run

This park is an easy drive and a great beginner park to take young children to fish. It has four large ponds with plenty of shoreline to fish from. It has a boat ramp, an observation tower, a sand volleyball area, and walking trails.

Bane Park Lane

9600 West Little York Rd.

This park is located just inside the Beltway near Jersey Village. It has a playground, a covered picnic table area, a small pier, and easy parking. It also has a lake that is stocked with Rainbow Trout. Catch and release is recommended.

McGovern Lake

1700 Hermann Drive

Fishers under the age of 12 and seniors 65 and older are allowed to fish in the lake near Hermann Park (off Bob’s Fishing Pier). It is located on the west side of the lake.

CAST A LINE There are many kid-friendly fishing spots in and around Houston. Eloise Taylor (pictured, at age 4) goes fishing with her dad Jared and big sister Evelyn.

.

by Cindy Burnett, staff writer

Buzz Reads

Five picks for June

Buzz Reads is a column about books by reviewer Cindy Burnett. Each month, Cindy recommends five recently or soon-to-be released titles.

The Dark That Doesn’t Sleep by Simon Mockler (historical thriller) – This fast-paced historical thriller centers around a mystery at a top-secret American military base built under the ice in Greenland, a locale inspired by an actual Cold War project called Project Iceworm. It is December 1967, and FBI consultant and NYC psychiatrist Jack Miller is called to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. to interview Private Connor Murphy. Three soldiers were trapped at this secret base in Greenland due to an arctic storm and when rescuers finally reached the base days later, only Connor is still alive, badly burned with no memory of what cause the fire that killed the other two soldiers. The FBI hires Dr. Miller to help recover Private Connor’s memories as well as determine which soldier was passing secrets to the Russians. The more he delves into the case, the more Dr. Miller realizes that nothing is at it seems. The Dark That Doesn’t Sleep is a clever thriller with countless surprising twists and turns that weaves in fascinating historical details about a failed top-secret military base in Greenland. Once I started it, I could not put it down, and I read it in less than a day. This would make a great Father’s Day gift.

Drowning by T.J. Newman (thriller) –Drowning, former flight attendant Newman’s standalone follow-up to her 2021 #1 New York Times Bestseller Falling, is a heart-pounding thriller that grabs you from page one and does not let up until the very last page. Six minutes after Flight 1421 takes off from Honolulu, the plane plummets into the ocean. As the passengers and crew work to evacuate the aircraft, an engine explodes, and the plane begins to flood. Those still inside the plane are forced to abandon the evacuation and attempt to seal themselves inside the plane and hope it will float until they can be rescued. But it is too late and the plane sinks to the bottom with 12 passengers still inside. Drowning is a can’t-put-down thriller, perfect to toss in your pool or beach bag this summer, but you may not want to read it while flying!

A Right Worthy

Woman by Ruth P. Watson (historical fiction) – In this compelling historical fiction title, Watson spotlights trailblazer Maggie Lena Walker, a Richmond woman who created the first Black-run bank in the United States and pioneered Black responses to the early Jim Crow era policies that were adopted in the later Civil Right Movement. As a teenager, Walker was brilliant, outspoken, and aware of the economic discrepancy between her Jackson Ward neighbors and her laundress-mother’s wealthy white clients, so she decided to make it her life’s work to help her community bridge that gap. She launched a newspaper, bank, and department store in her neighborhood as well as organizing boycotts and helping Black neighbors and friends exert their economic power; she was an incredibly forward-thinking woman whose story should be known more widely. Readers will enjoy learning more about this influential woman who left an indelible mark on history.

The Spectacular by Fiona Davis (historical fiction) – Fiona Davis bases each of her books in an iconic New York City building, and The Spectacular is set at one of the city’s most wellknown and beloved locales, Radio City Music Hall. Nineteen-year-old Marion is selected as a Rockette, the prestigious dance troupe that performs at Radio City Music Hall, much to the chagrin of her parents and her boyfriend. She loves the job but with four shows a day and exhausting rehearsals, she is not left with much time for anything else. Then one evening, a bomb explodes in the theater, and Marion’s personal connection draws her into the investigation. The behind-the-scenes glimpses into both Radio City Music Hall and the Rockettes are fascinating, and aspects of the story are more personal for Davis. Historical fiction readers will

find this one compelling and at times sadder than most of her books.

The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren (romantic comedy) – Writing duo Christina Lauren (writing partners/best friends Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings) is back with a fabulous summer read. Felicity Chen, who goes by Fizzy, is a bestselling romance author who has lost her ability to write happily-ever-afters, partly because she feels that she will never find her own true love. When Connor Prince, a documentary filmmaker and single dad, is tasked with creating a reality dating show or face losing his job, he contacts Fizzy to star in the show – what would romance readers love more than seeing their favorite writer fall in love on national TV? Reluctantly, Fizzy agrees but includes a long list of requirements that Connor surprisingly agrees to. Chock full of fun pop culture references and focused on our nation’s obsession with reality TV, The True Love Experiment is a sweet and engaging romance with fun banter and genuinely likeable characters.

Editor’s note: Southside Place resident Cindy Burnett also writes our weekly Page Turners column at thebuzzmagazines.com. She hosts the award-winning Thoughts from a Page Podcast, is co-creator of the Houston literary event series Conversations from the Page, runs the Instagram account @thoughtsfromapage, and regularly speaks to groups about books.

WHAT TO READ This month’s selections include two page-turning thrillers, two historical-fiction titles – one about Radio City Music Hall and one about the first Black woman to found a bank in the U.S – and a sweet romantic comedy.

Cindy Burnett

. by Tracy L. Barnett, staff writer

Travel Buzz

Greenland with the Boyle Boys

Kevin Boyle has been quietly building a global father-son tradition with his two teenage boys, Kevin Jr., 14, and Sean, 13, for nearly a decade. Together they’ve traveled to more than 40 states and 20 countries on several continents. It’s not that they don’t like to travel with Mom (Liz); Kevin and Liz traveled the world together before she experienced some severe turbulence and developed a fear of flying. Occasionally she has been able to overcome it and join them – for example, on an epic road trip through Europe – but mostly, for travel that involves a flight, it’s just the guys.

The father-son travel tradition began when the boys were 6 and 5 respectively – a weekend getaway to SeaWorld and Six Flags in San Antonio. Since then, they’ve explored much of Europe and such exotic destinations as Iceland and Australia, where marine biology enthusiast Sean had dreamed of snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef. A few years back, their 2017 cross-country New Zealand adventure was featured in Travel Buzz: Beauty at the End of the World (October 2018).

In 2018 after their European adventure with Liz, she took a direct flight home, but the guys weren’t done yet. They had a stop in Ireland and then another one in Iceland. Treasured memories there included swimming in its steaming geothermal pools, exploring its volcanoes on a Jeep 4x4, and enjoying its marine life, fishing and grilling on the boat while whale-watching. They loved it so much they decided to take their Northern travels to the next level, so last summer they chose Greenland for their big getaway.

“It’s the first time the three of us have been north of the Arctic Circle – and it’s definitely the most remote and the most adventurous trip we’ve taken,” said Kevin, CEO at Alaunos Therapeutics. “With global warming and also potential tourism growth in Greenland, we wanted to get there before the beauty is spoiled.”

Signs of pending change on the world’s largest island are everywhere; for example, the airport is doubling in size in Ilulissat, a charming West-coast town known for having more sled dogs than people.

Their point of departure was Denmark, which has had a close relationship with Greenland for

a millennium (formerly a Danish colony, Greenland was redefined as a district of Denmark in 1953).

In Copenhagen they spent a day at Tivoli Gardens, the inspiration for Disneyland, before flying to the town of Kangerlussuaq, pop. 508 – home to the island’s largest commercial airport. Kangerlussuaq would later be the point of departure for their biggest adventure – a hike and campout on the Greenland Ice Sheet. For now, they just had time for a foray to the grocery store across the street.

“We walked in and immediately saw guns for sale – long rifles – probably to shoot a seal, right next to the freshly baked bread for the day,” said Kevin. They grabbed some food before their next flight, then boarded the turbo prop to Ilulissat, Greenland’s third largest city with 4,600 people. The town charmed them with its vibrantly colorful wooden houses, its friendly people, and the local culture. Nearly 90 percent of Greenland’s population is of Inuit heritage, with 7.8 percent being Danish.

“Our first impressions were of the breathtaking scenery, our lungs filled with the freshest air imaginable; it was brisk and so clean,” said Kevin. “I couldn’t stop taking pictures.”

They headed immediately to the port, where they had booked a sunset kayak tour amid the icebergs with World of Greenland. This was their first experience of the midnight sun, which lit up the massive icebergs that surrounded them with a brilliant golden sunset hue.

“From our perspective, the sun never set at all,” said Kevin.

They were lucky to float past some hunters harvesting a seal, a practice only allowed by local people for sustenance. They observed the process up close, seeing the traditional bone-handled, half moon-shaped ulu knife used to butcher the

animal. The skins are used for slippers and jackets, and the meat is a staple in the Inuit diet.

“How amazing that within a couple of hours we were able to see the natives living a very real existence, earning their sustenance off the land and the sea,” said Kevin.

Sean, a lover of marine life, was shocked. “At first I was a little hurt to see that,” he said. But on reflection, he thought, “it’s really no different from catching fish or farm animals.”

Their tour guide explained to them the importance of keeping their distance from icebergs, since there is a danger of pieces shearing off and creating large waves that can capsize a boat. Although they appear to be just floating on the water, about 80 to 90 percent of the formation is underwater – “thus the expression, ‘the tip of the iceberg,’” commented Kevin. “The pictures don’t do justice to how large they really are.”

Kevin had booked four nights at the Best Western Plus Ilulissat, which featured blackout blinds to keep the midnight sun at bay, and opened the windows to let in a breeze. “It was so great to be huddled under the blankets with this chilly arctic air coming in,” he recalled.

Their second day they took a tour to the Eqi Glacier, often referred to as the “calving glacier” since it is one of Greenland’s most active, with large pieces frequently shearing off into the water with an explosive noise, creating the icebergs they saw all along the way.

SAILING AMONG THE ICEBERGS Kevin, Kevin Jr., and Sean Boyle sailing Disko Bay, en route to the Eqi Glacier from Ilulissat. Here they stopped about halfway to Eqi to shoot a photo in front of a waterfall.

This time they went on a steel-reinforced motorboat so they were able to get closer to the massive glacier, which is about 5 kilometers long and 200 meters tall – although only about 30 to 50 meters appear above the water. At some points the boat plows right through what looks like a straight sheet of ice, pushing it aside with its reinforced hull.

“Sometimes you’d be chatting and all of a sudden you’d hear this giant roaring sound that was the glacier speaking to you and breaking apart,” said Kevin.

“It was almost like it was giving birth to the iceberg,” said Kevin. “It’s such an interesting sensory experience – the whole country is, really,” he said. “The cool breeze, the chilly rain … you could almost smell the cold. It was fabulous; it was just awakening.”

They had one day in Ilulissat on their own, choosing to hike along the spectacular Icefjord at the edge of the city. They walked the whole town, and stopped by a community hall where

freshly caught whale meat and blubber were being sold.

Their own culinary experience was more Danish than Greenlandic – fish and chips and pizza, rather than Native food like whale, moose, or reindeer. Kevin learned too late that there was only one such restaurant in Ilulissat and it was booked far in advance.

Another highlight was the Ilimanaq Glacier Adventure, which began with a frigid speedboat trip down the Kangia Fjord, past sea lions playing in the icy waters to the tiny town of Ilimanaq, pop. 53. Their all-terrain hike took them through the Arctic tundra through a squishy green wetland to a gravelly glacier, where they changed from rubber boots to crampons and climbed up to see an expanse of zebralike striations of dark gray and brilliant white, interspersed with bright blue pools.

A long boat ride took them back to their last evening in Ilulissat, where they watched local artisans at work, connected with a local family

eating at an outdoor café, and listened to the sled dogs barking at each other.

“I was surprised at all the things people were doing,” said Kevin Jr. “It’s a whole different lifestyle, and it was pretty impressive how resourceful people can be. We went to a shop where whale meat was for sale, and they were using bone knives to carve the meat.”

They had grown quite fond of the town and were sad to leave, but it was time for their last and biggest adventure: the hike and campout on the Greenland Ice Sheet.

They boarded a plane back to Kangerlussuaq and met with their Danish guide, who took one look at their boots and said, “Nope, they are not sufficient at all; you are not going to be ok.”

He asked their shoe sizes and went to the building where the guides gear up, and came back with three rugged pairs of boots and three pairs of wool socks. They would need boots that were not just water-resistant but waterproof, the guide explained, since

GLACIAL ADVENTURES (Clockwise, from bottom left): A sense of relief and accomplishment after successfully setting up camp on the Greenland Ice Sheet (Sean, left; Kevin Jr., right); sunset over a glacial river on the Greenland ice sheet near Kangerlussuaq; stopping for a rest

and a drink from a pure glacial pool on an Albatros Arctic Circle camping adventure (Kevin Jr., Kevin Sr., Sean); the striking striation patterns of Saqqarleq Glacier (Kevin Sr., Sean, Kevin Jr.).

(continued from page 35)

they’d be fording streams along the way. Also, these were higher boots that would support the ankles on the rugged terrain and avoid a possible sprain, which could spell disaster in the treacherous backcountry.

“He was a savior,” said Kevin. “I really got the sense this is not an accommodation they typically make.”

Their tour bus had a fairly large group that was coming for a short hike, but only seven stayed for the campout. The campers were each responsible for hauling gear.

“We were like our own sled dogs, dragging behind our own sleds, and stacked in there were hiking poles, tents for all of us, food, cooking equipment, everything we would need – because there was positively nothing out there on the ice.”

They hiked for about a mile with the guides assessing the constantly changing landscape to find the best place to make camp, then set up their tents before heading out for a beautiful evening hike up to a point high enough where

they would briefly have cell phone reception. “We took a picture of the boys and I on the glacier and sent it to Mom, and she was flabbergasted,” said Kevin. “It was just gorgeous.”

The landscape was otherworldly – “just the vastness of ice as far as you can see. They very much warned us of the dangers; water is underneath and flowing, and you could end up falling into underground caverns. As beautiful as the surroundings are, you don’t want to twist an ankle or fall; the ice is sharp as razor blades.”

Finally back at camp they convened in the common tent, where they learned to chip the ice with an ax and melt it with their Sterno camp stoves so they could make instant coffee or hot chocolate and rehydrate the MREs of their choice.

Though it was time to sleep, it was a challenge – in part because of the excitement, but also because of the cold and wind whipping against their tents in the midnight sun.

In the morning, they breakfasted on crispy,

delicious grilled cheese sandwiches before cleaning up and packing for the hike back, and then, all too soon, the trip back home.

Looking back, Kevin reflects on what for him were the most important aspects of the trip. “We felt so connected to nature, and so removed from electronics,” he said. “In a world that is so wired, to be wireless and surrounded by perpetual beauty and to have a climate that was the antithesis of Houston –it was so invigorating.”

Father and sons alike were moved to be in such a pristine environment, said Kevin, and it made them reflect on how they can take more actions to reduce their environmental impact.

Hiking and camping together in such an extreme environment was also a great bonding experience, he said. “With the wind whipping like that, if it hadn’t been for the teamwork, the three of us working together, there would have been no way to pitch the tent. It really brought us closer together.”

ARCTIC MEMORIES (Clockwise from bottom left): A towering iceberg with reflection in Disko Bay, born from the calving Eqi Glacier; the quaint and colorful town of Ilulissat; Kevin Sr. enjoying the beautiful surroundings on a hike to the Ilulissat Icefjord; an evening kayak among the icebergs in Ilulissat (the Kevins: Sr., left, and Jr.)

by Dai Huynh, staff writer

Chef’s Corner

Benchawan Painter: An unapologetic, authentic Thai chef

The Thai people have the most lyricalsounding name for fish sauce. Many cooks claim nam pla is the most important flavoring ingredient in Thai cooking. Often, for fear of turning off the American palate, restaurants in this country will add too much water to dilute the intensely pungent taste and aroma of fish sauce for diners unable to surrender to its full funky charms. Well, you’re not going to get that at Street to Kitchen.

Street to Kitchen (6501 Harrisburg Blvd.) proclaims that it serves “unapologetically authentic Thai food.” Perhaps this is one reason why the James Beard Foundation selected its chef-owner, Benchawan Painter, as one of five finalists for this year’s Best Chef: Texas. Chef G, as referred to by her friends and patrons because her nickname “Kik” has the tonal sound of “G” in Thai, is determined to introduce Houstonians to the true, undiluted flavors of her homeland, which are sometimes a little jarring to the uninitiated.

However, this full-throttle approach has garnered Street to Kitchen a loyal following. The restaurant is booked up frequently, and the dining room’s teal-trimmed, pretty-in-pink walls ripple with anecdotes and laughs as Chef G’s husband and co-owner, Graham Painter, serves stir-fried basil beef, garlic chive pancakes, and fried veggie spring rolls at nearby tables.

The balance of sweet, salty, sour, and hot often is praised in Thai cooking, along with its harmonious bold flavors, but at too many restaurants, the heat is subdued, and the sweetness intensified as concessions to American palates. The spices are muted, and the herbs are less fresh than they could be. “You’re not going to find that here,” 47-year-old Graham says. “My wife started this restaurant because she couldn’t find food the way it was served in Thailand. So, we are not going to gringolize it here.”

In the kitchen, the 30-year-old Chef G choreographs her moves like a ballerina. Everything is labeled and orderly so that she can move fluidly, effortlessly preparing one dish after the next without hesitation. She worked at several Thai restaurants before opening her own minutes from her East End home, but most aren’t organized like this, she says. She learned

this lesson while cooking at Theodore Rex, whose James Beard Award-winning chef-owner Justin Yu stresses teamwork and that you can never over-prep.

You can barely squeeze three cooks into Chef G’s little kitchen. Her refrigeration space is also limited, and she orders just enough ingredients for the week. She relies on what’s in season and the farmers’ market. “It’s good,” she says, adding that it isn’t any different than back home in Central Thailand, where she fell in love with cooking at her grandmother’s knees. Her yaai used to say that if “you use fresh ingredients, the flavors will be good. You won’t need to add or do too much to the dish.”

The briny perfume of fish sauce fills the pocket-sized, 38-seat dining room attached to a

Valero gas station – along with the heady scents of Thai basil, galangal, coconut, lemongrass, lime, garlic, and chilies. Diners – diving into a faultlessly crisped whole, head-on branzino, green papaya salads, and stir-fry pad see ew with flat noodles coated with caramelized soy sauce and seared pork – barely notice the blare of horns and the rumble of the light rail train zooming across the overpass right outside the restaurant.

“This feels like Bangkok,” says Graham, a Houston native who met his wife while working as a creative director in Thailand. “If we close our eyes at night, it almost feels like we’re back home in Bangkok. Our image for this place is based on Thonglor, the Soho of Bangkok. Thonglor is this hip place full of designers, fash-

CHEF G Covid-19 pushed Chef Benchawan Painter – known as “Chef G” by friends and patrons because her nickname “Kik” has the tonal sound of “G” in Thai – and husband Graham to open Street to Kitchen sooner than planned, but their pandemic to-go business boomed with staples including drunken noodles made with homegrown Thai basil.

Raul Margarito Casares

ionistas, and hole-in-the-wall, chef-driven concepts like this. So, when we built Street to Kitchen, we told ourselves, ‘We’re not in Houston. We’re not in the U.S. We’re in Thonglor.’”

With that theme, Chef G offers no modifications or substitutions. For example, her curries don’t have the typical choices of chicken, beef, pork, or shrimp. In fact, you won’t see beef as a curry option because it is rarely eaten in Thailand, she says. Also, certain curries pair better with specific proteins. Therefore, Chef G has taken the guesswork out by offering massaman curry with only chicken or veggies. Her green curry comes with chicken or veggies, while the red curry can be made with veggies, shrimp, or chicken. The rare occasion Street to Kitchen offers beef is an overnight braised curry.

Diners also don’t have the option of mild, medium, or spicy. “We don’t adjust the spicy level,” says Chef G, adding that she avoids storebought curry pastes because they’re salty and lack complexity. Instead, the spicy level is pre-determined by the kind of curry paste she makes. “Massaman shouldn’t be spicy. It is the mildest of curries. Green curry should have a kick, but be followed by sweet and salty,” she says. “Now, if you want spicy, go for the red curry. This is how it is, and I try to go back to how I eat in Thailand.”

When we asked for a recipe that even a novice home cook could prepare, the Street to Kitchen chef offered pad see ew without hesitation. It’s quick, easy, and perfect for a weeknight family meal. It’s also super kid-friendly because the chili powder is served on the side, giving each diner the option of adding it.

Pad See Ew

16 ounces pork, thinly sliced

5 tablespoons oyster sauce, divided

3 eggs, divided

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons fresh cracked black pepper, divided

2 tablespoons canola oil or another vegetable oil, plus more for the egg

1 tablespoon minced garlic

16 ounces fresh sen yai or other fresh wide rice noodles (see note)

2 tablespoons mushroom soy sauce

4-5 stalks of gai lan (Chinese broccoli) sliced into 2-inch-long, ¼-inch-thick pieces with stems attached

2 tablespoons sweet soy sauce

1 tablespoon chili powder (optional)

In a medium bowl, mix 2 tablespoons oyster sauce, 1 egg, sugar, and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Add pork and, using a large fork or chopsticks, gently rotate slices to coat the marinade onto all sides. Cover with Saran Wrap and place in the refrigerator for four hours. When ready to cook, line up the ingredients in the order they’ll be added to the pan. Also, pad see ew is best served hot, so turn on the stove when the family has gathered to eat.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 14-inch wok, heavy 12-inch skillet or a large Dutch oven over high heat until it smokes. Add the pork to the hot pan in a single layer. Let cook, undisturbed, until well-browned, about one minute, then stirfry until just cooked through, about one minute more, pressing it against the pan to sear.

Stir in the garlic with the pork, then add

noodles, spreading them around in the pan, then toss and separate them with chopsticks or a wok turner, tongs, or both. When the noodles are sizzling, add mushroom soy sauce, oyster sauce, and black pepper. Toss noodles to coat and cook through. Keep cooking, leaving noodles undisturbed for about 20 seconds until they sear and caramelize.

When the sauce is half absorbed, add the gai lan and stir-fry just until bright and beginning to wilt, 30 to 45 seconds. Push the greens to one side of the pan, add enough oil to lightly coat the other side, and add the slightly beaten remaining eggs. Use the spatula to scramble the eggs, stirring and scraping until cooked, about one minute. Toss with the sweet soy sauce (add more to taste if you wish). When the noodles have absorbed all the liquid and the flavors are balanced, transfer the pad see ew onto a large serving dish and serve immediately with chili powder on the side. Each diner can sprinkle a little chili on top or not. Makes four servings.

Note: Fresh sen yai or other fresh wide rice noodles is sold at groceries, including 99 Ranch Market (1005 Blalock Road) and Hong Kong Food Market (11205 Bellaire Blvd.). To get a taste of Chef G’s cooking, visit her Street to Kitchen stall at the Urban Harvest Farmers Market (2752 Buffalo Speedway). She sells her signature Thai Omelet for $12 every Saturday morning at the market. The omelets made with seasonal ingredients are only available at Urban Harvest, not at her restaurant.

Editor’s note: Buzz dining columnist Dai Huynh is a James Beard food-journalism award winner and longtime Houston-based restaurant writer.

STREET TO KITCHEN On left: Pad see ew with pork, a stir-fried noodle dish some historians believed was introduced to Thailand by Chinese traders in the 1700s. On right: An occasional weekend special, dry-aged Wagyu is grilled rare, Tiger-cries style.

SPORTS

. by Todd Freed, staff writer

SportzBuzz

With a remarkable tenth SPC Championship in the last eleven seasons, the Kinkaid Falcons continued their dominance in boys high school golf. The Falcons won this year’s SPC championship by a lofty 47 stroke margin over second place Dallas St. Mark’s. It also marked Kinkaid’s seventh straight SPC boys golf title.

“Our guys stayed focused all year round,” said Falcons golf coach Bobby Eggleston. “It’s an experienced group that practices hard and loves to play golf. They considered the SPC tournament a business trip and just went out there and got the job done.”

The Falcons featured four of the top five finishers including individual medalist Jaivir Pande. The Rice University signee fired a 70 and then a 73 over the two rounds of play. “Jaivir is not only a really good golfer, but he’s also a great individual,” said Eggleston. “He has a tremendous work ethic and is a role model for our younger guys on the team. Jaivir finds a way to shoot between 68 to 73 every time out. In his four years here, I’d say he’s maybe had three or four rounds over par. He’s just been incredibly solid for us.”

Finishing second overall at the SPC tournament was Kinkaid’s Will Anderson, who carded a 74 and 72 over the 36 holes. In addition, Kinkaid’s Ford Montgomery and Tyler Karkowsky finished tied for fourth while fellow Falcon Charlie Sole rounded out the field for the newly crowned SPC champions.

In baseball, the Episcopal Knights captured this year’s SPC Championship with a decisive 13-0 victory over Houston Christian in the SPC tournament final. Episcopal erupted for a season high of 14 hits while pitcher Preston Sullivan allowed only one hit in a game ultimately ended by the ten-run rule.

The blowout victory in the SPC final came one day after Episcopal rallied for two runs in its final at bat for a dramatic 2-1 victory over rival St. John’s in the SPC semifinals. Senior centerfielder Baron Dichoso capped off the Knights’ dramatic victory by knocking in the game-winning run, while pitcher Adam Katz fired a two-

hitter in the Knights victory. “We won 14 of our last 15 games and our guys just had a refuse-tolose mentality. I’m just very proud of them,” said Episcopal head coach Matt Fox

It was pretty much a tale of two seasons for the Knights, who had an uncharacteristic 8-10 record through their first 18 games. “We just kept finding ways to win,” said Fox. “It all started with our 11-inning comeback win over Houston Christian in the regular season and continuing through victories like our nine-inning win over Kinkaid, where we again had to rally late to pull out the victory.”

With a standout season on the mound to go along with a .338 batting average, Katz was named the Knights’ team MVP. The Falcons senior will next play at Davidson College. In addition, fellow senior Andrew Thornton, who’ll play college baseball at Washington and Lee University, won the team’s leadership award. “Andrew is the best defensive third baseman I’ve had in 21 years,” added Fox.

In tennis, Memorial Mustangs Tara Ahmadi and Sofia Mazzucato teamed up to win the UIL 6A Girls Doubles State Tennis Championship.

The duo captured the title with a three-set victory over their opponents from Round Rock’s Westwood in the state finals. The victory also marked the fourth state championship over the

years in girls doubles for the Mustangs.

“It was a huge accomplishment for Tara and Sofia,” said Memorial tennis coach Budd Booth. “They had lost to the Westwood team they played in the state finals twice earlier in the season, but the third time was the charm. They worked extremely hard to win that title and I’m very proud of them. I also want to give credit to our assistant coach Brian Mandell, who did a great job with them while I was overseeing our mixed doubles team that was playing in the state finals at the same time.”

The Mustangs mixed doubles tandem of Kat Lowy and Egor Morozov came within one victory of a state championship before falling to Plano West in a tough three-set match in the state final. “Kat and Egor had an incredible season,” said Booth. “They had an undefeated 400 record leading into the state final. They were disappointed not to win state, but Kat is only a sophomore and Egor is a junior, so they’ll have a great shot at it next year.”

Editor’s note: Todd Freed is the host and executive producer of H-Town High School Sports, which airs Saturday at 10:30 p.m. on CW39 and Monday-Thursday on AT&T SportsNet SW. To submit high school sports news for possible inclusion in SportzBuzz, please email todd@thebuzzmagazines.com.

SUPER SEVEN The Kinkaid golf team proudly display the number seven after winning a seventh straight SPC Golf Championship. The Falcons have also won ten of the last eleven SPC golf titles. Pictured with head coach Bobby Eggleston (from left) are Charlie Sole, Jaivir Pande, Will Anderson, Ford Montgomery, and Tyler Karkowsky.

. by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

SportzBuzz Jr.

Baseball buds

The Spring Branch-Memorial Sports Association 8U baseball team, with many players from Rummel Creek Elementary, came out strong at the end of their season after working hard in their first year together. The team, the Asheville Tourists, also known as the Moonshots (paying homage to the professional team the Tourists, who used to be called the Moonshiners) had an impressive four-game winning streak at one point in the season. The boys were coached by Casey Gregerson, Seth Michaelson, and Chris Madden. Pictured (from left) are players Sebastian Moreno, Shaan Gupta, Van Michaelson, Oliver Kurkowski, Henry Bauer, Aidan Madden, Fynn Gregerson, Charlie Schneider, Calvin Ludtke, Carlos Moranos. Not pictured: Michael Silberman.

Another triathlon under their belts

The Typhoon Texas Kids Triathlon, presented by Texas Children’s Hospital, was recently held at the Typhoon Texas waterpark in Katy. Brothers and avid athletes David and Jack Bernatova (pictured, from left) proudly displayed their medals after a grit-filled performance in the race. David placed third of the almost 400 kids this year and Jack was third in the 8-year-old group. David has won two first-place titles, one second place, and three third-place titles since the age of 6 in a variety of triathlons (not just Typhoon Texas). Jack has had two first places, one second place, and two third places since the age of 6. They have placed in the top three in every single triathlon since 2019. Their little sister Mariana, 2, cheers them on along the sidelines at all their races.

Thanks for the memories, POLL

The 2023 Post Oak Little League Juniors Hat Ceremony is a special, time-honored tradition each year that is dedicated to the players of Post Oak Little League and their years in the league. Pictured (from left) being honored this year are Grant Sperandio, Evan Jones, Harrison Cornett, Phillip Bandy, John Ware Simons, and Alexander Ramirez. This Post Oak Little League tradition takes place when the boys reach age 14 and graduate out from the league. With 76 participants, this was the largest class to be celebrated in Post Oak history. Each player was presented with a special hat including a pin from each of the teams they played on.

Editor’s note: Send your best high-resolution photos and behind-the-scenes stories about young local athletes, in both team and individual sports, to SportzBuzz, Jr. at info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Include all contact info, names, ages, grades and schools. Featured athletes must live in Buzz-circulation neighborhoods. Items will be published on a space-available basis.

Welcome to SportzBuzz Jr., a column spotlighting neighborhood athletes in elementary and middle school.

Matt Bennett

by Mischa Wijesekera, age

16

Buzz Kidz

Shelving illiteracy in Houston

As a child, I immersed myself in every book I could get my hands on – from The Cat in the Hat to The Land of Stories. My unrelenting passion for literature often meant that I read half a dozen books within a week. As a high schooler, my passion for books has not wavered.

Fortunately, I have been lucky to have access to an endless supply of books. For me, obtaining books has been simple; my school library never failed to stock up on the latest books from popular authors, and the Houston Public Library was a quick 10-minute drive.

During the pandemic, schools faced significant budget cuts and, unfortunately, replenishing bookshelves in school libraries took a backseat. A shocking realization hit me – books, the backbone of education and literacy, are not a right but rather a privilege in thousands of underserved

communities. For millions of children, obtaining books was more complicated. School libraries not only had a limited selection of books, but the closest public library could be a long 10-mile drive, not a quick 10 minutes from home.

In 2022, I sought to alleviate the unfair burden on underserved communities by launching Happi Readers, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting literacy in underserved communities through book donations. Happi Readers has collected and distributed over 2,500 books to over half a dozen schools in HISD and Alief ISD, and over two dozen Little Free Libraries.

Unfortunately, the inequality in schools and communities seeps far beyond our city. My aspirations to transform the world do not end with Houston. Happi Readers currently has a chapter in

Abu Dhabi, UAE and expects to launch chapters in at least half a dozen countries by the end of 2023.

As I promote education and literacy through Happi Readers, I’ve discovered that I am the one learning the most. I learned that everyone needs to work together to put books on the shelves of underserved communities. Most of all, I learned that the goal is not to donate as many books as possible, but to transform as many lives as possible.

Editor’s note: See happireaders.com or @happireaders on Instagram.

Want to be a Buzz Kid? Email approximately 350 words, a high-resolution photo and caption to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Or mail it to The Buzz Magazines, 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401.

2126 Peckham Street, Houston, TX 77019 Direct 281-658-2713 • Corporate Office 800-886-7007 RYRSHUS@NETW1.COM

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READ AND SUCCEED Mischa Wijesekera, a sophomore at Lamar, next to a Little Free Library outside of Montrose Urban Food Farm in the heart of River Oaks.

December 31, 2025 will be the most exciting New Year’s Eve in living memory for transfer tax nerds. That’s the last day to make a gift before the estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exemptions are cut in half. Most of us need not worry about it. Some will enjoy worrying about it, but should not. Very few can and should do anything with the opportunity.

The unified estate, gift, and GST exemptions increased to $5 million in 2011, with an inflation adjustment after 2011. That $5 million temporarily doubled to $10 million both for taxpayers dying and for gifts made between 2018 and 2025. With the inflation index, the exemption amount is almost $13 million for 2023 ($12,920,000 to be precise). Without an act of Congress, come January 1, 2026, that exemption amount will be cut in half, to about $6.5 million (an inflation index will remain).

Initially, there was concern that taxpayers could not exempt the largest gifts made between 2018 and 2025 without also dying between 2018 and 2025. Final regulations in 2019 clarified that taxpayers can rely on the date of death exemption or the date of gift exemption, whichever is larger. In plain English, there’s a $6.5 million freebie that’s use it or lose it. If you have a spare dollar, or $6.5 million, you can give it away before 2026, and tax free. After, that same $6.5 million is taxed at 40% on gift or death.

Normal people with $6.5 million quit work. Their estates are not taxable anyway, and it usually doesn’t help them or their children to make big gifts. December 31, 2025 will be just another boring New Year’s for these peo-

ple.

A surprising number of people even with $6.5 million cannot afford major gifts. They have a $1 million home, their lifestyle costs $350,000 a year, and they need $10 million in liquid assets to maintain that lifestyle in retirement. Pity them. They cannot afford to retire, much less give money away. Their children will still get $6.5 million transfer-tax free (per parent), and will just have to scrape by after paying 40% on the excess.

Only those who have excess capital, and lots of it, should worry about 2026. A conservative plan assumes $1 million in liquid assets is needed for every $35,000 in annual expenses, after taxes, inflation, and investment advisory fees. Add a cushion for unfunded liabilities, e.g., long-term care. Multiply by 20%, just to be safe. If you don’t have $1 million or more in excess capital, don’t bother with major gifts before 2026.

We write wills and go to probate court. Foreign nationals and international families welcome.

Russell W. Hall, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Board Certified – Estate Planning and Probate Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 6750 West Loop South, Suite 920, Bellaire, Texas 77401, 713.662.3853, bellaireprobate.com/blog

Neighborhood Tails

Odie, age 2, Mix, Blossom St.

My name is Odie, short for Odysseus. And just like the Great King, I was found wandering in a ditch near Hockley until I was rescued by the fine folks at the WAGS Fund! These days, I live in Rice Military with my two humans. Our favorite activities are family-jam sessions (I’m the lead howler), zooming around Johnny Steele Dog Park, and eating cheese. A fun fact about me is that I am featured on a mural outside of Dogtopia in Montrose. Can you believe that? I became an overnight sensation! Being an artistic muse is a lot of pressure, but somehow I manage. When I’m a good boy (always), my human brings me to work. As the Chief Executive Pup, I have the single most important role of going door-to-door to collect treats and head pats. The humans love it and I keep the company running. A win-win! Got a cute critter? Email a picture of your pet with approximately 150 words to info@thebuzzmagazines.com or mail it to The Buzz Magazines, 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401.

Longer and stronger pollen seasons

Last month, I wrote that 25% of American adults now suffer from allergic rhinitis (hay fever). The hygiene hypothesis mostly explains why this has happened, but since The Buzz gives a limited amount of words in this space, I really didn’t get to express the complete picture. Compared to 1990, pollen seasons typically start 20 days earlier and last 10 days longer. An allergic reaction is essentially a “false alarm”. That is, an overreaction to a harmless substance.

So, what to do if allergen avoidance and medications don’t work?

Allergen immunotherapy (allergy shots or drops) works very well to prevent those false alarms if prescribed and administered correctly. What does “prescribed and administered correctly” mean? Well, for one thing, don’t get your allergy shots prescribed by someone who isn’t board certified by the American Board of Allergy & Immunology. Medical allergists undergo rigorous training on how to dose allergy shots properly, so that we don’t mix ingredients that hamper or impede each other, and we use therapeutic doses high enough that can actually make you non-allergic. Second, if you decide to go with allergy drops, don’t buy them just anywhere. You know that label “Cedar Fever” on that bottle of store-bought drops that says it contains Mountain Cedar and the dose is “12x”. Do you know what that means? They took one milliliter of Mountain Cedar and made a 1:10 dilution 12 times. So that 30 mL bottle contains 0.000000000003 mL of Mtn Cedar. Guess what. That’s a placebo dose. That’s really a very, very low placebo dose. Sold as a supplement and not an FDA approved medicine, it doesn’t need to provide any proof that it is effective. But look on the bright side.

You only have a 0.000000000003% chance of anaphylaxis from that dose, so you don’t have to waste money on an EpiPen! Plus, placebos have been shown to work about 30% of the time. So, who knows. Maybe the placebo will work for you. While you’re at it, buy a few lottery tickets if you feel that lucky.

But if you’re really allergic and you want real relief, see the only group of allergists in the Houston area who have had two of their doctors as long-time members of the immunotherapy committee of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. You know, the group that requires that their members are actually physicians who did fellowships in allergy & immunology and that their fellows are actually board certified. And not board certified in environmental medicine or clinical ecology. But board certified by the one and only American Board of Allergy & Immunology.

No one nose allergies like we do.™

Note: Information contained in this article should not be considered a substitute for consultation with a board-certified allergist to address individual medical needs.

David B. Engler, M.D., The Allergy Clinic, 7707 Fannin, Suite 100, Houston, Texas 77054, 713.797.0993, *1200 Binz, Suite 1400, Houston, Texas 77004, 713.522.9911, www.allergyclinic.com, *Operating as Houston Allergy and Asthma Clinic

. by Angie Frederickson, staff writer

Buzz About Town

Family fun day

Broach, who lost his battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, in 2013. To date, the foundation has raised more than $6 million.

Crawfish for a cause

It was a day of family fun for the Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH) Ambassadors at the Houston Arboretum & Nature Center. Brandon, Briggs, Scottie, and Carlisle Powell (pictured, from left) participated in Family Fun Day hosted by Ginny and L.E. Simmons, Paige and William Simmons, and Virginia and Cramer Williams. The kaleidoscope-themed afternoon included camel rides, goat yoga, sensory dough kits, nail art, sports challenges, and music from Adrian Michael and the Greenway Band. The TCH Ambassadors support the hospital’s programs, and their recent efforts established an intensive outpatient program for patients across the hospital system. Attendees at Family Fun Day also brought new crayons and colored pencils that will be given to children and families at TCH through the Child Life program.

JDRF’s starry night

The annual JDRF Promise Ball raised $2.5 million for type 1 diabetes (T1D) research. Honorees Andrea and Michael Soper (pictured) were joined by other supporters and families affected by T1D at the Hilton Americas Hotel. Marshall and Suzette Lang chaired this year’s ball, Starry Night: A Celestial Evening of Hope, which began with a cocktail hour with aerial performance artists. When guests sat down for dinner, the program included carbohydrate counts for each dish, highlighting the efforts people with T1D must make to manage

their blood-sugar levels. In addition to honoring the Sopers, the Promise Ball recognized the Fund a Cure Family: Jake, Sammy, Matthew, Andrew, Kina, and Fred Lara Sue Sue and Don Aron were honored with the Meredith and Fielding Cocke Visionary Award, and Don was also recognized as an original founder of what was formerly known as JDF (Juvenile Diabetes Foundation).

Laughter is the best medicine

The 11th annual Stand Up for Brain Cancer gala welcomed more than 450 guests to the ballroom at River Oaks Country Club to benefit the Broach Foundation for Brain Cancer Research. Meg Bres and Wendy Askew (pictured, from left) laughed with the crowd while listening to comedian Nate Bargatze’s entertainment and enjoyed cocktail hour and dinner. The Broach Foundation was established in honor of James

Crawfish season brought supporters of the Nick Finnegan Counseling Center (NFCC) out for a traditional afternoon boil. Leigh Williams, Leanne Gotcher, and Amanda Savoie (pictured, from left) attended the 13th annual Crack ’em for a Cause crawfish boil that raised $138,000 to provide affordable mental-health services to people in the community. The Nick Finnegan Counseling Center was founded by Susan and Bill Finnegan, in memory of their son, Nick. The event was held at Memorial Trail Ice House, owned by Nick’s childhood friend John Shaeffer. John worked with NFCC executive director Mary

(continued on page 50)

Jenny Antill

Priscilla Dickson

Nick Finnegan Counseling Center

Daniel Ortiz

Elizabeth Hand to honor Nick’s memory, and event chairs Leanne and West Gotcher, Amanda and Ryan Savoie, and Leigh and Jeff Williams put together a memorable afternoon. More than 400 supporters attended the all-you-can-eat crawfish event with face painting for the kids and music by Cooper Mohrmann.

Great futures for boys and girls

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston’s (BGCGH) 2023 Great Futures dinner, held at the Hilton Americas hotel, raised $915,000 for after-school and summer programming. Jennifer and Lance Gilliam (pictured) attended the event that was chaired by Houston Texans chair and chief executive officer Cal McNair and Houston Texans Foundation vice president Hannah McNair. The Texans have partnered with BGCGH to provide programming for academic success and healthy living, including establishing the Houston Texans Teen Club. Guests enjoyed hearing from emcee Marc Vandermeer, the “voice of the Texans,” and watching a special performance by the Houston Texans cheerleaders and Texans Deep Steel Thunder Drumline, joined by young members of the BGCGH cheer team and drumline.

An Aggie family tradition

Texas A&M University student Mary Margaret Williamson (pictured, second from left, with classmates Emma Alexander, Caroline Lett, Caroline Dethloff, and Ashley Ayers) celebrat-

ed with family and friends after receiving her Aggie Ring. Receiving the ring is a proud moment for each Aggie because it is a recognition of completing specific academic requirements. Traditionally, students wear their ring with the class year facing them to designate they are still current students. At graduation, students ceremoniously turn their rings around to face the world. Mary Margaret, a graduate of St. Agnes Academy, will begin her senior year at A&M this fall. She comes from a devoted Aggie family, including parents Michelle and Ernie, and older brother Travis. Her younger brother John will join her on campus in August as an incoming freshman.

Tickled pink

Dressed in varying shades of pink, Leila Perrin and Suzan Deison (pictured, from left) attended the Tickled Pink luncheon benefitting the American Cancer Society. Supporters gathered at the ballroom at the Post Oak Hotel and raised more than $300,000 for breast cancer research and services. Luncheon chairs were breast cancer survivor Donna Lewis, Allison Cattan Lewis, and Emily Lewis; honorary chairs were breast cancer survivor Leisa Holland-Nelson Bowman and Millette Sherman. The afternoon included a showing of models in the special Tickled Pink collection, designed by Christy Lynn and available at Tootsies. When Dr. Rick Ngo, former board chairman and Jeff Fehlis, executive vice president for the American

knew someone with cancer to stand, more than 500 people rose from their chairs.

85 years of Lamar High School

Alumni and families gathered to celebrate the 85th anniversary of Lamar High (continued on page 52)

Cancer Society asked everyone in the room who was either a cancer survivor, a caregiver, or

Daniel Ortiz

Daniel Ortiz

(continued from page 50)

School. Principal Rita Hayes welcomed hundreds of guests back into the halls where they spent their high-school days. The Lamar band performed as alumni walked through the Grand Hall to the renovated 1938 building and entered the Ned Holmes Performance Hall for a special program. Guests enjoyed listening to Lamar’s choir and orchestra, and alumni board president Max Shilstone shared information about improvements made to the school, scholarships for graduates, and efforts to support the teachers. After the program, the crowd was led to the front lawn by the cheerleaders to take an 85th anniversary photo (pictured), before enjoying lunch with former classmates and tours of the new facilities.

Beauty on the boulevard

Members of the Tanglewood Garden Club gathered at The Forest Club for the 2023 Spring

Luncheon chaired by Ashley Sloan, Rachel Kramer, and Autumn Hunt (pictured, from left, with J. McLaughlin chief executive officer Mary Ellen Coyne, second from left). Coyne was the guest speaker, and she spoke to the crowd about her experiences leading the national clothing store. After the program, members of the garden club modeled the newest J. McLaughlin collection. The talented Tanglewood models were Jamie Barrere, Patrick Connelly, Cassandra Dalton, Tina DeGiorgio, Justin Douglass, Barbara Kirk, Julia Jacobson, Ashley Lemming, Alison Moss, Jonathan Sloan, Erin Slosburg, Kris Solberg, and Laura Winslow.

Classical education

Houston Classical Charter School hosted its first foundational dinner to raise funds for a campus-

expansion project. Supporters Haydeh and Ali Davoudi (pictured) enjoyed the evening at Masraff’s that featured a silent and live auction and raised more than $1 million. The dinner was chaired by Jessica Leeke and Dr. Julie Kuo,

and guests heard from Houston Classical Charter School founder and chief executive officer Deyvis Salazar about plans for the future. Houston Classical Charter School provides free education to children from underserved backgrounds in grades kindergarten through three, with plans to expand through 8th grade. The school’s goal is to prepare children to graduate from both high school and college with the skills they will need to be successful adults.

Be seen in Buzz About Town. Send your high-res photos and community news to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Items are published on a space-available basis. Also share your upcoming-event listings on thebuzzmagazines.com.

Priscilla Dickson

. by Andria Frankfort Dilling, staff writer

Back Porch

Summer reading 2023: Uplifting reads

Every summer, Back Porch takes a month to share what books neighbors are finding engrossing and inspiring. Sort of a “people’s choice” version of Cindy Burnett’s expert monthly Buzz Reads column.

This is our month, and this year’s theme is uplifting. It’s been a long three years – someone recently said, However long ago you think something happened, add three years. Did we lose them or were we just in a twilight zone? Doesn’t matter – there isn’t anyone who couldn’t use a little happy this summer.

Carin Collins is always reading, whether that means she’s reading an actual book or listening to one being narrated on her walks. “I love listening on Audible, because you get the voices,” she says. Carin, who works in wine sales, enjoys a laugh-out-loud book, or at least one that brings a smile. “Everything we read right now is about gender and race and politics,” she says. “But I have read a few that might not be Nobel Prizewinning but made me smile.”

One book she says made her laugh out loud is The Guncle by Steven Rowley. “It’s kind of a sad story – very sweet and touching. But the Gay Uncle, Guncle, has never had kids before and suddenly has to take over the care of his niece and nephew after their parents die. He makes these crazy rules he thinks make sense for children – you can Google ‘Guncle Rules’ – which make no sense.” The Guncle was named to numerous “best beach reads” lists last summer.

“There’s another sweet one called The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie,” Carin says. “It’s a love story with an unexpected twist, which I hate to hear people say, because then you’re looking for the twist the whole time!” Written by Rachel Linden about life’s circumstances and the path not taken, Carin says the novel “makes you feel good about wherever you are.”

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus lands on Carin’s list not only because it’s a “best book of the year” many times over or because it’s a funny delve into feminism and what it was like to be a brilliant woman chemist in the ’60s, but also because “one of the neatest parts is that one of the characters is the dog, and there are chapters written from his perspective,” she says. An Amazon Review says: “If you’re looking for deli-

cious hilarity, characters filled with competency and quirk, and pure entertainment, then read Bonnie Garmus’ exuberant novel.”

The Jung Center – which once was named Houston’s “quirkiest bookstore” by Texas Monthly – holds the largest collection of books on depth psychology in the Southwest. Where better to look for books that help us refresh and renew? We asked Elissa Davis, longtime manager of The Jung Center’s bookstore, for her favorite picks for uplifting reads.

“Anything by Kate Bowler,” Elissa says. Bowler is the bestselling author, inspiring podcaster, and professor at Duke University Divinity School who is known for encouraging people to move beyond perfection to live lives that are “joyfully mediocre” (which was the title of her 2022 series of emails containing summer blessings).

Bowler’s latest book, co-authored with Jessica Richie, is The Lives We Actually Have: 100 Blessings for Imperfect Days. It's “a reminder that we don’t need to wait for perfect lives when we can bless the lives we already have.” Other books from Kate Bowler include the national bestsellers No Cure for Being Human (And Other Truths I Need to Hear) and Everything Happens

for a Reason (And Other Lies I’ve Loved).

Elissa’s next pick comes from Koshin Paley Ellison. Untangled: Walking the Eightfold Path to Clarity, Courage, and Compassion is an introduction to a Buddhist way of finding meaning and aligning with our core values in order to “create a life of true pleasure” in the midst of a world that is increasingly filled with unhealthy distractions disguised as connection (think social media), often resulting in loneliness.

The Stress Prescription: 7 Days to More Joy and Ease by psychologist and stress expert Elissa Epel is also on Elissa Davis’ list. “It’s a little book,” she says, “and the copies I ordered for the bookstore flew out the door in a week. For me, that’s hotcakes!”

And for little ones, Elissa loves May All People and Pigs Be Happy by local mindfulness teacher Micki Fine Pavlicek. Elissa loves the book so much, she made a felt pig, complete with a tiny felt bow in her hair, to gift her goddaughter alongside the book.

Happy summer, and happy reading!

Editor's note: For more book recommendations, see this month's Buzz Reads plus our weekly Page Turners column by Cindy Burnett.

HAPPY READING This summer is the perfect time to enjoy a few uplifting books.