Tanglewood/River Oaks Buzz - March 2024

Kelsey Bing

Peter Berry: A Star from the Start

Rodeo School Art Contest Winners Corn Dogs and Vino: Rodeo Wine Garden Rodeo-ing with Little Ones Spring Break Reads

OlympicsBound

by Pooja Salhotra

Big Birthdays at Sea Oscars: Classic Quotes, New Movies Houston, TX Permit No. 2047 PAID US Postage PRSRT STD

Cindy Gabriel: The Belle of Bellville

EDITOR’S NOTE I love to hear from residents who have formed friendships after being featured in The Buzz. But this is a first: We recently received a call from a Buzz-area resident letting us know she found a driver’s license in the neighborhood. She Googled the name and spotted a Buzz article in which he appeared. She asked if we could help contact him, and thanks to her kindness and research skills, he has his license back and perhaps a new friend. In this issue, we highlight standout, talented individuals from Buzz neighborhoods: Kelsey Bing, goalkeeper for Team USA field hockey, heading to the 2024 Olympics in Paris; Peter Berry, one of 16 athletes selected to compete the last weekend of March for 12 spots on Team USA’s wheelchair basketball team in the 2024 Paralympics; and students who received high honors in the Rodeo School Art Contest. As you tune into the Olympics this summer or peruse the art gallery at the Rodeo this month, we can all take pride in knowing these are our neighbors. Lucky us. And if you happen to lose your wallet, no worries. We got you. joni@thebuzzmagazines.com

THE BUZZ MAGAZINES BELLAIRE • WEST UNIVERSITY • MEMORIAL • TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS Published by Hoffman Marketing & Media, LLC 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401 info@thebuzzmagazines.com • p: 713.668.4157 • f: 713.665.2940 Follow us on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter thebuzzmagazines.com Editor-in-Chief Publisher Editor Associate Editor Design Manager Staff Writers

Contributing Writers Account Managers

Joni Hoffman Michael Hoffman Jordan Magaziner Steinfeld Caroline Siegfried John Duboise Tracy L. Barnett Sharon Albert Brier Cindy Burnett Andria Dilling Angie Frederickson Todd Freed Cindy Gabriel Cathy Gordon Michelle Groogan Dai Huynh Annie Blaylock McQueen Jennifer Oakley Cheryl Ursin Karen Vine Fuller, Pooja Salhotra Andrea Blitzer Leslie Little Jo Rogers

On our cover: St. John’s School graduate Kelsey Bing, goalkeeper for Team USA field hockey, is heading to the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Cover photo by USA Field Hockey The Buzz Magazines has made all reasonable attempts to verify the accuracy of all information contained within. Advertising claims are solely the responsibility of the advertiser. Copyright © 2024 Hoffman Marketing & Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any portion of this magazine by any means without written permission is strictly prohibited. Printed on recycled paper. Please remember to recycle.

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 4

lawellphoto.com

MAILBAG

Your letters, thoughts, opinions Touching story and photos I cannot thank you enough for sharing the story of Entryway in the January ’24 issue [A Heart in Bloom: Helping the homeless, a life’s calling by Cathy Gordon]. The first week we received a $5,000 donation from a reader which started our year on a very positive note. So many friends, acquaintances, and new opportunities have reached out to either congratulate me on what we are doing, wanting to volunteer or refer a potential participant.

Most special to me is that I got to share the story of my mother and her life of service. She is 95 and the photo of us will probably be the last one taken while she was still feeling well. She has recently entered hospice care.

Thank you, Cathy Gordon, for letting people know me, my mother, our dog, and my son, Jackson. The Buzz’s work in our community is such a blessing and service. I will continue to be your loyal reader.

Gaye Jackson Editor’s note: We were so moved to receive this letter and honored to meet Gaye and her mother, Faye, and were so sorry to hear that Faye Jackson passed away Jan. 22, 2024.

Loving the February stories We’ve received so many compliments on the article [Meet Cutes: From first glance to forever love by Pooja Salhotra, Feb. 2024]. Friends old and new seemed to love learning our history! Few things are more fun to relive than the story of how we met and fell in love. In the process, we remembered vivid details, each from our own perspectives, which made the full picture come together so realistically. Pooja did an excellent job capturing our personal story all the way through.

And I understand y'all know Carrie Bradshaw and her amazing running story [Beating the Odds: From recovery to marathon training by Pooja Salhotra, Feb. 2024]! Excellent coverage of her as well. We grew up together, believe it or not!

Misty Morales

Meaningful ‘meet cute’ As native Houstonians recently moving to Kerrville last summer, we sadly don’t get The Bellaire Buzz in our mailbox anymore. But to my sweet surprise, I received the link from my girlfriend group of the article about my darling son, Cody and his beautiful wife, Caroline Plummer [Meet Cutes: From first glance to forever love by Pooja Salhotra, Feb. 2024]. Got chills reading it and seeing the adorable pictures. Theirs is a true love story.

My friends promised to save me a copy that I will forever treasure. Love me some Bellaire Buzz!

Lynn and Mike Plummer

Something to think about Cindy [Gabriel], my mom and I always read and enjoy your Buzz stories, but I had to reach out and let you know how uplifting the January one is [Finding Hope in 2024: With a little fantasy and Native American lore by Cindy Gabriel, Jan. 2024]. My fantasy is that we could find a worldwide or at least national TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 6

platform for more people to read and think about what you have said.

Bret Reagin

Love the article – and the sweater Caroline [Siegfried]: This is a crazy request…however, I am very eager to find a sweater like the one Kelley Green is wearing in your article [Gingle All the Way: Have yourself a merry little cocktail by Caroline Siegfried, Dec. 2023]. It has horses on it and it is beautiful. My granddaughter is becoming an equestrian and I think she would love one like this. She lives in Phoenix, so I doubt they would be in the same crowd! I have Googled the heck out of it and cannot come up with anything like it.

Your article was awesome. I really enjoy reading The Buzz.

I understand if this an impossible request.

Sally McDevitt Editor’s note: Sally, we loved your letter – and we agree, we loved Caroline’s story on cocktails as well as Kelley’s fabulous sweater. Caroline checked with Kelley, who said: “Caroline, you know I got a great chuckle out of this. Found it at Bering’s in the early fall. The tag says T H M L. Not sure this will help? I hope it does." We’re happy to say Sally was successful in her sweater search. We hope she tries making one of those cocktails at home to celebrate.

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.

What’s your story?

We are looking for residents for upcoming articles who: •Have a high school senior graduating in the Class of 2024 who would like to be part of our annual “Where are they headed?” feature. (Submission deadline: April 25) •Know a buzzworthy neighbor to feature.

•Have a compelling travel tale.

•Have a milestone life event to share.

•Have a unique passion or hobby.

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

Advantage Testing of Houston has delivered outstanding educational services to the Houston community for over 30 years.

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TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 7

NEIGHBORS

by Cindy Gabriel, staff writer

The Belle of Bellvil e My Aunt Shirley Charpiot

I

f you have ever lived anywhere near Bellville, Texas or know anyone who has, the name Shirley Charpiot might bring a smile, or (forgive me) ring a bell. Whenever someone says they once lived in Bellville I always ask if they know Shirley Charpiot. Literally, 100 percent of the time they say of course!

Aunt Shirley didn’t seem surprised when I told her this. “I have always wanted everybody I knew to love Bellville, and made it a point to meet anyone new who moved to town. I was always kind of a cheerleader.”

Actually, Shirley was drum major and a twirler in the Bellville High School Band as evidenced by pictures in a museum exhibit in Bellville’s town square. She graduated Salutatorian. “Not Valedictorian,” she emphasized of those days that coincided with World War II. “I had the second highest scores.”

She is pictured here on the occasion of her 90th birthday party, proving that she hit the gene pool lottery in looks, brains, personality, and health. If she has logged any significant hospital time, no one remembers. Heck, she doesn’t even need glasses.

To me, she has always been this glamorous woman who drove weekly to Houston to meet up with friends for a round of tennis at the University Club; took exotic trips abroad with her husband Bob; or headed down to Divine, Texas to hunt for quail along with sons Robert and David and their friends. “They called her Sure Shot Shirley,” according to her son Robert.

Shirley lived “in the now” before it was trendy.

A daily newspaper reader and book lover, she can talk to anyone of any age about endless topics.

She is totally present in every conversation.

Whenever I look back on an awkward conversation, I find myself wondering how Aunt Shirley would have handled it. She was five years older than my “high-strung” father who was full of opinions about politics, religion, and lifestyles of other people that did not fit his standards. He could match Aunt Shirley’s charm in one moment then, seconds later, spoil the mood of a family gathering with his unsolicited opinion. One time, I remember cringing at something Dad said. Then Aunt Shirley stepped in, gave him a big hug, and said, “Oh, Clymer

SHIRLEY RINGS A BELL Her name is familiar to most anyone the least bit familiar with the town of Bellville, Texas. In this photo, Shirley Charpiot greets relative Elaine Tucker at the 2016 celebration of Shirley’s 90th birthday at The Richardson Ranch in Buckhorn, near Bellville.

Junior, you don’t really mean that.” Dad demurred, said something mildly funny, and the mood was saved. (Note to self.)

Shirley was not born into a bed of roses in October 1926 in Houston, Texas. “We moved a lot.” To say Shirley was the baby of the family is an understatement. Her sister, Inez, my grandmother, was 17 when she was born. There were three younger teenage brothers as well. She was my father’s aunt, though she was just five years older and seemed more like his sibling. She’s actually my young, cool great-aunt.

Shirley’s father died when she was two, leaving the family without income. “I never knew where money came from, I guess my older siblings worked and contributed what they could.”

As the older siblings married, Shirley and her mother would live with each of them, always sharing a bed.

The family was kind of nomadic anyway, moving from town to town as oil patch jobs came and went. Besides Houston, Shirley lived in Raccoon Bend, Hempstead, and Woodville – “In this terrible house that was left by my grandmother,” Shirley said of the East Texas house.

“My mother had this idea that if we moved, things would be better. They weren’t really.”

Yet, Shirley managed to excel in different schools in spite of the moves.

In Woodville, she won first place in a public speaking contest at the age of 10. In Hempstead, she earned a Loving Cup for Outstanding Student.

Shirley’s traveling student days finally ended

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in Bellville where she spent four straight years at Bellville High School, while working after school as a switchboard operator, taking numbers and moving plugs. “I got 25 cents an hour.”

I suspect Shirley caught the eye of Bob Charpiot (from a large French family) on the bus going to Bellville High School. Shirley said, “He didn’t give me the time of day. He was a senior and I was a freshman.”

Bob joined the Air Force and took off for WWII as soon as he graduated. He returned as a war hero, piloting 34 bombing missions directly over Germany in The Eighth Infantry. The odds of returning after 34 trips qualified him for membership in an elite group of survivors called The Lucky Bastards Club. From there his luck continued. Shirley said “yes” to his marriage proposal. Then the two headed to Austin where Bob pursued a Civil Engineering degree at The University of Texas. Then back to Bellville where Bob started a civil engineering company, Charpiot and Dunn Inc. Bob died at 84 in 2008.

More unexpectedly, in 2020, Shirley lost her youngest son David at 69, who also raised his family in Bellville.

Today, at 97, Aunt Shirley has finally turned in her car keys, making me realize she may actually be mortal. So why does she think she’s lived such a long, healthy life? “I really think it’s all these years of living in this wonderful community of Bellville.” There she goes again. Good thing, because now she needs a ride to church, bridge, and the beauty shop.

ARTS

by Karen Vine Fuller, contributing writer

Works of Rodeo Art Talented students honored for their art pieces

HOLD YOUR HORSES Left: Suzanne Shelby, a sixth grader at the time, poses with her Best of Show trophy for Horse in a Pasture with a Windmill in 1982. Top right: What Lies Ahead by Carol Wang, sophomore at DeBakey High School for Health Professions, received a Gold Medal. Bottom right: Saddle Up by Chloe Ni, junior at Memorial High School, won Best of Show.

B

ack in 1982, when she was a sixth grader at Eagle Lake Middle School, Bellaire resident Suzanne Shelby entered a submission into the Houston Rodeo School Art Contest. Her piece, Horse in a Pasture with a Windmill, earned Best of Show. “I remember that it was a big deal. We were invited to attend the awards ceremony in Houston,” Suzanne reminisces. “I was so excited to wear my ‘Bum Phillips style’ cowboy hat and I am fairly certain my mom made the fancy vest I wore with my Wranglers

and Ropers. I won a giant HLSR trophy. My love of art was born from that experience and it’s why I decided to study architecture and continue to work on creative projects to this day.”

Over the past five decades, hundreds of thousands of Houston-area students, pre-kindergarten through high school, have entered the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo’s (HLSR) School Art Contest. Winning entries earn the privilege of being displayed during the Rodeo.

“We are one of the older committees in HLSR

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and have come a long way from 1969 when School Art was named an official committee after spending years as a poster contest. Now we offer four competitions: 2D, 3D, Quick Draw, and the Graphic Arts Contest,” shared Alicia Smith, HLSR School Art Committee Chairman. This year, more than 30,000 students participated at the district and private-school level, supporting 97 public districts and 54 private schools within a 125-mile radius of Houston, she said. The 2D categories include colored (continued on page 12)

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 11

WESTERN MASTERPIECES Top row, from left: Setting Son by Josiah Wu, a junior at Houston Christian High School, won Best of Show; An Unspoken Bond by Sophie Zhou, a sophomore at The Kinkaid School, won Best of Show; Cowgirl and Champion by Zoe Villalobos, a junior at Lamar High School, received a Gold Medal; Wild West Waltz by Alina Du, a senior at Memorial High School, won Best of Show; bottom row, from left: Cowboy by Jacob Chung, a freshman at Memorial High School, received a Gold Medal; 5 O’clock Shadow by Jasper Ma, a freshman at MHS, won a Gold Medal. (continued from page 10) drawing, mixed medium,

monochromatic, and painting.

The students’ art is judged by a panel of 30 professional and working artists. The artwork is divided into three categories: elementary, junior high, and high school. Outstanding pieces receive the highest awards: Best of Show, Gold Medal, and Special Merit. Seventy-two of the top pieces go to auction, which in 2023 alone raised over two million dollars for scholarships.

A portion of the scholarship money supports a grant that provides students the opportunity to attend the Western Art Academy Master Class Program at Schreiner University as well as classes at The Glassell School of Art. Here, some talented Buzz-area student artists share their extraordinary Western-themed works of art. These students all placed in the 2024 Rodeo School Art Contest.

What Lies Ahead – Gold Medal Carol Wang, 10th grade, DeBakey High School for Health Professions, Art Teacher: Neda Khan “I wanted to accurately express the man’s

expressions and make him stand out in my painting. I was very nervous about having a human figure as my subject. I had only focused on scenery oil paintings before. Throughout the process, I learned many new techniques and painted the work layer by layer, adding more detail as I continued. It took me around two to three months to complete, and I worked on it weekly while balancing my personal and work lifestyle.”

Saddle Up – Best of Show Chloe Ni, 11th grade, Memorial High School, Art Teacher: Elisa Barry “I thought the reference photo was beautiful.

I loved how detailed the saddle looked, with the stitching and flowers, so I chose this subject to allow myself to focus on the intricacy. It took a while, maybe 70 or 80 hours. I listened to a lot of podcasts and music, particularly during the slower and more tedious sections.”

Setting Son – Best of Show Josiah Wu, 11th grade, Houston Christian High School, Art Teacher: Charlotte Stuart “I wanted to continue a theme I started fresh-

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 12

man year centering on a Native American man and his journey. The inspiration for this piece came from a pow wow my sister and I attended at Trader's Village. I took a photo of a dancer at the end of his performance, and I tried to capture the beauty and vibrancy of his garment in my artwork. The process took around 20 hours to complete, and I mainly used watercolor for the medium with white ink and charcoal for the highlights and shadows.”

An Unspoken Bond – Best of Show Sophie Zhou, 10th grade, The Kinkaid School, Art Teacher: Nancy McMillan “I wanted to paint something different from the typically seen Rodeo pieces. I’ve noticed a lot of pieces with people riding on horses or on bulls with an emphasis on the shot being in midaction. In this painting, I tried to take a step away from that, and instead, I focused on the details of the horse along with use of lighting and an anonymous hand to still tell a story but in a different way. The piece allows the viewer to explore their own interpretation, maybe focusing on the horse’s (continued on page 14)

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 13

PICTURE-PERFECT FARM LIFE Left: At the End of the Day by Hyeonwoo Yang, an eighth grader at Memorial Middle School, won Best of Show; top right: A Cowgirl’s Crown by Phoebe Phan, an eighth grader at MMS, received a Gold Medal; bottom right: Squak Bach by Macie Simecek, a seventh grader at Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School, received a Gold Medal. (continued from page 12) thoughts, the mysterious

hand, and who it belongs to, etc., which was the ultimate goal.”

Cowgirl and Champion – Gold Medal Zoe Villalobos, 11th grade, Lamar High School, Art Teacher: Benji Stiles “The ‘Cowgirl’ is my godmother (and my mom's best friend). The photo was taken at a family friend’s ranch one afternoon. I loved the composition and feel of it. It was fun to see my godmother’s reaction when she saw herself in the painting. She was so thrilled and surprised.”

Zoe also received a Special Merit last year for her painting, Sweet Pea. “Both paintings from ’23 and ’24 were done in oil on canvas – which I learned for the first time at the Western Art Academy at Shreiner University on scholarship funded by the Rodeo. Overall, it has been an amazing, positive experience.”

Wild West Waltz – Best of Show Alina Du, 12th grade, Memorial High School, Art Teacher: Elisa Barry “I've always thought bull riding was super cool.

When I went to the Rodeo last year, I got to witness bull-riding in real life. The intensity of the moment and the fast-paced action inspired me to create my sculpture. From watching the event, I

wanted to create the same effect of the cowboy flying off the bull. The day I had to bring my sculpture to school, I was really scared and paranoid that I would somehow drop the sculpture.

So, I got my entire lunch table to help me carry it to the art room, and they got really scared too.

It was funny to have a whole group of people terrified for the fate of my sculpture. Luckily, we got it there without any bad things happening.”

Cowboy – Gold Medal Jacob Chung, 9th grade, Memorial High School, Art Teacher: Marilyn Guerinot “I chose to draw this photo because it displayed the cowboy's relaxed mood. Taken at the Houston Rodeo in 2022, the image shows a cowboy resting on a cow, depicting a scene that is peaceful and serene. I used softer pencil techniques for the background to emphasize the quiet environment. This artwork took me around five months to finish.”

5 O’clock Shadow – Gold Medal Jasper Ma, 9th grade, Memorial High School, Art Teacher: Elisa Barry “I liked the way the light of the sun hit the cow’s fur, illuminating one eye and casting the other one in shadow. I painted the piece in small parts. It didn’t take terribly long because I like

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 14

painting. I think colored pencil takes me longer.”

At the End of the Day – Best of Show Hyeonwoo Yang, 8th grade, Memorial Middle School, Art Teacher: Allison Koenig “The motivation for my picture was that the reference photo showed the whole picture of the farm, cattle, and the jobs carried out by the people there. I chose this picture because it was not just one animal or one subject but a moment.

This photo was taken a few years ago when I went to a ranch with my family. I was panicking when I accidentally ripped the corner of my paper, but my teacher told me I will be fine since it will be covered by the frame.”

A Cowgirl’s Crown – Gold Medal Phoebe Phan, 8th Grade, Memorial Middle School, Art Teacher: Allison Koenig “The story behind my reference photo was that I took my mom’s old cowboy hat and a bundle of fake flowers that were left over from making a wreath and I took a photo of them in my backyard. When my grandma found out that I had won, she told me she thought I had just weaved a hat and taken a photo of it.”

Squak Bach – Gold Medal Macie Simecek, 7th grade, Meyerland

Performing & Visual Arts Middle School, Art Teacher: Christina Gonzalez “I chose to do this piece because a friend of my mom’s has chickens, and she sent us a picture of them. I loved the photo so much that I decided to paint them. When I was working on the picture, the chickens started looking like old men, and now it changed my perception of the way chickens look.”

Freedom – Best of Show Locke Beavers, 7th grade, Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School, Art Teacher: Christina Gonzalez “I knew I wanted to do a horse running free because I wanted to represent the free spirit of a horse in the wild. I worked on it for about 14 hours.”

Ready to Rodeo – Gold Medal Shriya Vinoth, 2nd Grade, Rummel Creek Elementary School, Art Teacher: Barbie Koy “I saw a clown at a Disney theme park that motivated me to draw this picture. Clowns always make others happy even when they have struggles inside. My inspiration was my brother. We draw together and have lots of fun moments scribbling, watching YouTube art and drawing. That experience helped me achieve this award.”

Cows Galore – Gold Medal Lucy Brown, 8th grade, Second Baptist School, Art Teacher: Kevin Gamas “I chose to draw cows for my Rodeo art project because they are cute and are one of the animals in the Rodeo. I used graphite pencils, and it took three to four weeks in art class. I liked creating a picture that represented Texas. I was born in Texas and have lived here my whole life, so it was cool to make a drawing that represents a place that means a lot to me.”

HERE’S LOOKING AT YOU Top left: Freedom by Locke Beavers, a seventh grader at MPVA, won Best of Show; top middle: Ready to Rodeo by Shriya Vinoth, a second grader at Rummel Creek Elementary School, received a Gold Medal; top right: Cows Galore by Lucy Brown, an eighth grader at Second Baptist School, received a Gold Medal; bottom: Steer Clear by Sammy Quintero, a fifth grader at Rummel Creek Elementary School, won Best of Show.

Steer Clear – Best in Show Sammy Quintero, 5th grade, Rummel Creek Elementary School, Art Teacher: Barbie Koy “The idea for my painting just popped into my brain. I wanted to draw a western animal, so I chose the bull. I used oil pastels which are great because the colors blend together. When we found out that I won Best in Show, my family and I went to celebrate at my favorite Italian restaurant.”

H

ouston is lucky to have the Rodeo School Art Committee and Contest to showcase the many talented, often beyond-their-years, artists in the greater Houston area, including some in our own Buzz backyards.

View more of the 2024 winning entries in NRG Center’s Hayloft Gallery, located on the first floor between the two escalators and against the windows. The gallery is open to the public during the Rodeo, Feb. 27-March 17, 9 a.m.-9

p.m. The Student Art Auction takes place March 10, 11 a.m. in the Sales Arena, and is open to the public. Additionally, view student winners on the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo website at rodeohouston.com/exhibitorscontestants/school-art-contest.

Editor’s note: HLSR takes place Feb. 27-March 17, 2024. Read more about the School Art Program at rodeohouston.com/exhibitors-contestants/school-artcontest/. Find the full lineup at rodeohouston.com.

Also in this issue, read about taking the little ones to Rodeo in this month’s Buzz Baby by Annie McQueen and, for the 21+ crowd, read about the Rodeo Wine Garden by Dai Huynh.

MORE ONLINE See this story at thebuzzmagazines.com to view some Buzz-area students who were honored in the 2023 Rodeo School Art Contest.

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 15

by Pooja Salhotra, contributing writer

USA Field Hockey/World Sport Pics

SPORTS

Going for Gold Kelsey Bing’s journey to the Olympics

F

ifteen years ago, Kelsey Bing decided – by the process of elimination – to play field hockey. Now, the 26-year-old athlete is bound for the summer 2024 Olympics in Paris with Team USA. Kelsey’s field hockey journey began when she was a seventh grader at St. John’s School, where students were required to play a sport each season. The options in the fall were volleyball, field hockey, and cross country. Kelsey ruled out volleyball because she preferred outdoor sports.

And cross country just wasn’t the right fit. “I’m not really a long-distance girly,” Kelsey said.

Field hockey seemed the most similar to soccer, a sport Kelsey played competitively, so she went for it.

About 30 girls were on the roster, but only 11 could play on the field at a time. In need of a goalkeeper, the coaches offered up a deal: if a player opted to play goalie for one half of the game, they were guaranteed to play in the field for the other half.

“I did the math and was like, I’m literally going to get to play more if I’m a goalie, so I’m going to go ahead and sign up to be a goalie,” Kelsey recalled.

That strategic choice epitomizes Kelsey’s competitive and driven personality, said Lindsay, Kelsey’s younger sister. From a young age, Lindsay recalls doing cartwheels on the soccer field during her games while Kelsey was analyzing plays and keeping track of statistics from the sidelines.

“She was the most competitive kid ever,” Lindsay said. “There are photos of her when she’s little holding Olympic rings and saying she wants to be like Mia Hamm,” referring to the former American women’s soccer player, a twotime Olympic gold medalist.

Kelsey said she enjoyed field hockey goalkeeping more than she expected and continued playing the position in eighth grade, the same year a club field hockey team called Texas Pride started up in Houston. Competitive by nature, Kelsey was eager to make the SJS varsity team when she got to high school. “That’s all my eyes were set on,” Kelsey said. So, she signed up for Texas Pride to pick up new skills.

OLYMPICS BOUND Kelsey Bing, who plays goalkeeper for the US Women’s National field hockey team, won player of the match following the team’s opening game against India at the Olympic qualifiers in January.

But before Kelsey even got to high school, she reached even greater heights in the field hockey world. The summer before high school, Kelsey attended a regional qualifier put on by USA Field Hockey, the national governing body for field hockey in the United States.

Kelsey was selected to attend the national qualifier at Virginia Beach, where some professional women’s players made a stopover after qualifying for the 2012 Olympics. When Kelsey saw those players, she set her sights on

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 16

the big leagues.

“My eyeballs were wide, and my mouth was agape,” Kelsey said. “I was like, these are the coolest people in the world, and I want to be just like them.”

Coaches identified Kelsey as one of three goalkeepers they wanted to join the Under 16 US Junior Women’s National Team, a feeder to the national team.

“It was completely unexpected,” said Hague Bing, Kelsey’s mom, who, along with Kelsey’s

USA Field Hockey/World Sport Pics

CLIMBING THE RANKS Top left photo: Kelsey (second from left) and Texas Pride teammates (from left) Reese Vogel, Kaylie Mings, and Caroline Hanan went to Virginia Beach for the 2015 national challenge. Bottom left photo: The SJS Varsity field hockey team celebrates their SPC win. Pictured here are (bottom row, from left) Kelsey, Jennifer Trieschman, Lindsey McKone, Cameron Weiner; (second row, from left), Kate Copeland, Carson Copeland, Dani Loya, Elle Clonts, Reese Vogel, Mike Kleinstub; (third row, from left) Grace Wilson, Avery Morris, Izzy Chambers, Lizzy Ellison, Sarah Van Loh, Emily Pedrick, Sarah Grace Ritter, JaDa Johnson, Fred Fyhr; (fourth row, from left) Natalie Stone, Audrey Ledbetter, May McCabe, Brenda Mercado, Grace VanLoh; (back row) Terrie Warren, Craig Chambers, Isabel Windham, Virgil Campbell, Gordon Center, and John Vogel. Right photo: Kelsey qualified for the national women’s field hockey team when she was a student at Stanford University.

younger sister Lindsay and dad Eric have been some of her biggest fans. “When they said she qualified for this and this, I had to go look on the website to see what it was because it was so much higher than I even had thought possible.”

The accomplishment was all the more noteworthy considering that Kelsey had only played field hockey for two seasons and had little training compared to other players. At the time, many people didn’t even realize people were playing field hockey in Texas. The sport was popular on the East Coast but almost unheard of in the South. Even now, field hockey is not offered at most Houston area public schools.

During high school, Kelsey juggled a challenging courseload alongside national and international field hockey trips. She played on the Varsity team for St. John’s and, during the winter season, she dropped soccer and went all-in on field hockey, playing with Texas Pride and helping them end their losing streak.

Tina Edmonds, head coach at Texas Pride, credits Kelsey with helping grow Texas Pride to one of the top-rated clubs in the country.

“She helped us not lose all of our games, quite frankly,” Tina joked. “She got a lot of shots on her in the beginning. Our goalies now get no shots.”

Kelsey had the unique ability to direct the

field, telling players where to move and what to do from her clear vantage point in the goal, Tina said. Her spatial awareness helped her make strong and strategic decisions, even before she had developed all the technical skills she would need to play at the professional level.

Teammates say Kelsey was a natural leader on and off the field. Reese Vogel, who played with Kelsey at SJS and Texas Pride, recalled Kelsey going out of her way to help Reese prepare for early-morning away games.

“I had trouble waking myself up for those early games. I was a slow riser,” Reese said.

“Kelsey would wake up early and do warm-up stretches with me in the parking lot to make sure I was ready to play.”

During her junior year of high school, Kelsey jumped from the international U-16 team to the U-21 team, skipping the U-18 age category altogether. That meant that as a 17-year-old, Kelsey was playing alongside college students.

She spent much of high school traveling to play in international tournaments. She played in Amsterdam, Uruguay, The Netherlands, Trinidad and Tobago, and also sometimes traveled domestically to Lancaster, Pennsylvania for training.

“All the hard work and sacrifice have been amazing,” Hague said. “It’s a lot, but she’s han-

dled it so well.”

Meanwhile, college coaches had already taken note of Kelsey’s goalkeeping abilities and sought to recruit her. After her sophomore year of high school, Kelsey committed to Stanford University, where she’d play on their field hockey team and study mechanical engineering.

“It was one of the few places I went where I saw athletes who not only cared about the sport, but also cared about school,” Kelsey said.

In college, Kelsey continued the dance between academics and field hockey. And that dance has continued at a higher level. After graduating from college in 2020, Kelsey pursued a master’s in engineering from Stanford and continued as goalkeeper for the professional women’s team, which she had qualified for as a junior in college.

The combination of field hockey and engineering might strike some as unconventional, but Kelsey says the two are connected in surprising ways. When Kelsey is preparing for a big game, she often reviews hours of game tape to see how the opposing team plays and how she can adjust her strategy accordingly. It’s not engineering per se, but it uses the same set of analytical tools that she uses as an engineer.

“Maybe I’m not going through and writing software, but I am thinking (continued on page 18)

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lytical perspective and organizing data,” Kelsey said. “That to me is a big overlap.”

In addition to playing professional field hockey, Kelsey works about 30 hours a week remotely as an engineer for Xwing, an aerospace company based in California. While Kelsey spends at least 20 hours of her week in practice and trainings with the team based out of Charlotte, North Carolina, she spends her afternoons working on autonomous flight systems.

“It's very nice for me to have two separate things, so if one is not going well, I'll just go focus on the other one,” Kelsey said.

But by all measures, things seem to be going well in both arenas. Kelsey is loving her engineering job, and last month, she prepared for a trip to India for the 2024 Olympic qualifiers. It would be a return to the same spot where her team suffered a devastating loss in 2019, preventing them from qualifying for the 2020 summer Olympics.

“The thought of going back there was stressful,” Kelsey said.

But in the semifinal match against Japan, Team USA clinched a 2-1 victory and a ticket to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. To top it off, Kelsey was named Best Goalkeeper of the Tournament.

“There was a lot of screaming, hugging, and celebrating,” Kelsey said. “Now, thinking about that moment, it makes me smile.”

The following day, they played a match against Germany, losing 2-0 before catching a 7 a.m. flight the next morning to Goa, a beachy state along India’s coastline with the Arabian Sea. Much of the team caught a stomach bug, Kelsey said, so celebrations were quiet and low-key. The team spent a few days in Goa before heading to the eastern Indian cities of Bhubaneswar and Rourkela, for mini tournaments.

Back in the U.S., Kelsey’s fans were ecstatic.

“I requested time off work the second it happened,” Kelsey’s sister Lindsay said. Lindsay works as an investment banker in New York City, and she said that getting time off in the summer can be tricky. The 2024 Summer Olympics are scheduled for July 27-August 9 at Stade Yves-du-Manoir.

Reese said her parents woke up in the middle of the night to watch the qualifying match in India. They immediately called the Bings to congratulate them on the win.

“My whole family is going to Paris to cheer her on,” Reese said. “We still have to figure out our Kelsey Bing merch.”

Kelsey isn’t sure what will come next in her career. For now, she’s taking it one game at a time.

“It’s hard to make long-term decisions in an international sport because so many things are outside of your control whether it be an injury or a new hotshot coming through,” Kelsey said.

“So for me, it’s just trying to enjoy the games I’ve been given and move from there.”

USA Field Hockey/World Sport Pics

(continued from page 17) about things from an ana-

TEAM BING Top photo: Kelsey’s family attends a Pro League match at UNC Chapel Hill; pictured (from left) are Lindsay Bing, grandmother Dempsey Ollison, Kelsey, grandfather Bob Ollison, Hague Bing and Eric Bing. Middle photo: Team USA celebrates after winning their opening match of the Olympic qualifiers. Bottom photo: During her high school days, Kelsey makes an impressive save during a match against St. John’s rival, The Kinkaid School.

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National Wheelchair Basketball Association

SPORTS

by Andria Dilling, staff writer

Peter Berry A star from the start

P

eter Berry has always been a leader. Even as an elementary school-aged player in Post Oak Little League, people knew he was exceptional.

Back in 2011, Tommy Lamme, a Little League coach at the time, drafted Peter and his younger brother Aaron for the Post Oak Little League Aggies, the same team Tommy’s son Charlie was on. The boys had played football together previously, and Tommy says he knew the Berry boys were good competitors. “Peter was my first baseman, which is a very important position for 8- and 9-year-old baseball,” Tommy remembers. “In the last inning of our first playoff game, we went into our final at-bat down by five runs. I had run out of all my ‘Gipper’ speeches and bribery gum. The team was a chaotic mixture of tears, snow cone anticipation, and ambivalence. In the midst of all that…Peter asked me if he could address the team. I stood back and let this 9-year-old take over.”

Tommy says he remembers Peter telling his teammates: I know we can do it. I believe in this team and all of you. Don’t give up, and we will win.

“The snow cones never tasted so good as when that team came together in the last inning and scored all those runs to win the game,” Tommy says. “We wouldn’t have done it without Peter’s speech.”

Kenny Herz’s son Max played for the other team – the Wolverines – that day. “Peter was everywhere in that game, the superstar player,” Kenny says. “I was in breakfast group with his dad. He was so proud. It was just Little League, but it was a big enough deal that I remember it.”

Today, Peter is a poised, personable, and focused college senior – and one of The University of Alabama’s star wheelchair basketball players.

Peter and Aaron learned about wheelchair basketball during rehab from the tragic accident in 2011 – just two months after the big Little League win, and caused by a distracted driver – that left the brothers paralyzed from the waist down and killed their parents, Robin and Joshua Berry. Their younger sister Willa was injured, but not as severely. “[Wheelchair basketball] kind of gave us back

QUALIFIED Peter Berry is one of 16 athletes selected to compete later this month for 12 spots on the USA's wheelchair basketball team in the 2024 Paralympics.

everything which had just been stripped from us,” Peter says. “The physical movement, the freedom of moving at a fast pace. We had played all the contact sports, and this gave us back that outlet for contact and physicality and aggression.”

Always team players, the Berry boys also appreciated the prospect of being part of a team again. “The camaraderie [within the TIRR Memorial Hermann Hotwheels team] was an added support group on top of all the support we were already receiving,” Peter says. “Once we got back to Houston, we took off [with basketball] and never looked back.”

At the time, nobody could have predicted the magnitude of the impact wheelchair basketball would have on the boys’ lives.

After graduating from The Emery/Weiner School in 2021 and 2020, the brothers both received full scholarships to The University of Alabama to play on their wheelchair basketball team, which is ranked number two in the country. Their younger sister Willa recently joined them in Tuscaloosa as a freshman.

But Bama is yet another springboard for Peter.

At the writing of this story, he is one of 16 athletes who made the cut to compete for 12 spots on Team USA in the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, Aug. 28-Sept. 8. The four not chosen will act as reserves in the event someone on the team is

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unable to play. He’s one of three college students; the other two, friends of Peter’s, attend the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. “It’s funny,” Peter laughs, “when we see each other on the court, we’re talking so much trash, but then here we could be teammates. It’s a weird energy.”

The others vying for spots on the team range in age from 24 to 37. “It’s pretty competitive trying out and dealing with so much experience on the court,” Peter says. “I’m learning to play with guys who have been playing since before I was born.” The pace is faster, the players are stronger. Similar to the transition from high school play to college play, Peter says, “There’s more to lose, and there’s more to win.”

Of course, there’s no guarantee Peter will be selected for the final team, but his outlook, characteristic for him, is one of gratitude. “I have to be grateful no matter what the results might be,” he says. “This gives me plenty of opportunity to hone my skills and be ready for the next thing…” which could be the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles.

The second round of tryouts for Team USA is scheduled for the last weekend of March.

Peter’s take: “I’m hoping to stay on for Paris. But we’ll see.” His former Little League coach’s take: “He’ll make it. I’m sure of it.”

“At the end of the day, the things that turned me into the player I am now, the things I was

Kyla Michelitch, Alabama Adapted Athletics National Wheelchair Basketball Association

learning at 11 and 12 [years old], are the same things we’re doing now,” he says thoughtfully.

“We’re so gifted to have such a beautiful platform here at Bama,” Peter says. “The standard is so high for athletes here, and we are in the mecca for adaptive sports anywhere in the country.” The University of Alabama’s Adapted Athletics program has earned 21 national championship titles across all sports since it started in 2003 with women’s wheelchair basketball. Peter’s hope is that the perception of adaptive sports catches up with the reality. “I hope we’re making people more aware – we’re putting in just as many hours as our ablebodied counterparts. We’re making sure we’re not dipping or falling behind.

“It’s important to never take your foot off the gas, because there’s always someone looking to take your spot.”

Is wheelchair basketball as rough as it looks?

Peter considers the question and says, “Yeah, you could say that. It’s kind of like a mix of NASCAR and football with basketball. If you sit close enough to the floor you can quite literally smell the burnt rubber from when we hit each other.”

And there are a lot of run-ins on the court.

Flipping over in the chairs, athletes are expected to be able to right themselves in quick succession. “If you flip over,” Peter says, “the reps will never stop the game.

“It’s like a dance. It’s so meticulous, such a unique skill set you have to have. On top of that, you’re only using your upper body, so you’re using the same muscles over and over. It’s really intense.”

Training involves more than a “solid 20 hours” of practice. There’s weightlifting, individual shooting practice, plus all the therapeutic resources the university offers: massage, cupping.

“All of that goes into it.” But Peter says the support outshines the pressure. “The program is so family oriented. We walk in every day and I’m grateful to be surrounded by people so invested in my success. That’s the biggest deal for me.”

Peter thinks about the commitment he’s taken on. “You get used to being sore,” he says.

“The biggest challenge is definitely mental.

Being able to balance so many commitments at once. You can’t play if you’re not getting good grades. But you can’t perform if you’re not practicing. And you can’t play or perform if you’re not healthy, and part of that is maintaining a social life.

“To be honest, it’s not so different from learning how to work a job and pay rent and spend time with your family. You just start a little earlier when you’re doing this in college. These are skills we can carry with us the rest of our lives.”

While Peter does see wheelchair basketball in his foreseeable future, he says it’s not the end game. The plan is to graduate this May and stay in Tuscaloosa to earn a master’s degree in marketing, and to keep playing basketball. “I’m taking time to figure out what that might look like,” Peter says, adding that he recently took the LSAT and

FOCUS AND DETERMINATION In games, at practice, and in life, Peter Berry gives his all. He and his brother, Aaron Berry, both received full scholarships to The University of Alabama to play for their top-ranked wheelchair basketball program. Top photo: Peter playing at a University of Alabama game; bottom left: Peter is one of three college students who made the cut to compete for the 12 spots on Team USA in the 2024 Paralympics; bottom right: Gathered before the 2020 Houston Sports Awards, where Peter received the Insperity Inspiration Award, are (top row, from left) Willa Berry, Noah Berry, and Misha Berry; (bottom row, from left) Peter Berry and Aaron Berry.

might like to go into entertainment law.

Before that, Peter’s entertaining thoughts of playing professionally in Europe, where the athletes earn a little more money than they would in the states. “Only it’s not a career choice,” Peter says. “The goal is to go and train, maybe for 2028 [Paralympics], and live it out and see how far I can take it. Ultimately, having a good job and supporting my family, that’s the end goal.”

Peter is quick to thank everyone around him. “Simone and Uncle Matt [Berry] are the definition of doing the right thing and my biggest role models,” Peter says of the aunt and uncle who raised him, his brother, and his sister alongside their children Noah and Misha. “My family in general are my mentors,” he says.

“And my teammates and coaches for sure.

There’s my blood family and my family here at Bama. They give me the resources to learn and figure things out on my own, and after that, I take a lot of pride in figuring it out and adapting and persevering.”

With or without a spot on this year’s 2024 Paralympic Team USA, Peter Berry the young leader has grown into Peter Berry the young rockstar. And at home in Houston, we’ll keep cheering.

Editor’s note: For more on the Berry family, read Remembering Robin and Joshua Berry by Andria Dilling, Aug. 2011, and Enough Lives: Berry family fights distracted driving by Andria Dilling, May 2017.

For the links, see this story at thebuzzmagazines.com.

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ARTS

by Cindy Burnett, staff writer

Spring Break Reads Recommendations from Buzz residents

W

hether you are headed out of town or enjoying a staycation, Spring Break is an ideal time to read a good book.

I view reading on a Spring Break much like I view summer reading – everything is fair game and there is no genre that works best because every reader is unique. Instead, the quality of the writing, the plot, and the overall enjoyment of the story are the important factors to consider. I queried Buzz residents who read regularly about their recommendations for entertaining Spring Break reads and enjoyed the wide range of suggestions that these avid readers made.

Michele Carlin: “If you’re heading to the mountains or just wish you were, then Go As a River by Shelley Read would be a great book to read over Spring Break. While not a light read, it is such a great story! It follows the life of Victoria Nash, growing up in rural Colorado beginning in the late 1940s and spans the next 20 years or so of her life. While there is heartbreak, painful decisions, family tragedies, it is also a love story, with redemption and hope woven throughout. I especially love how the author places such a strong emphasis on Victoria’s connection with her family’s peach orchard, and the river that serves as the backdrop to her life. It is a thought-provoking book that will tug at your heartstrings and keep you pulling for Victoria to find the happiness and closure that she deserves.”

Kelly Hogan: “If you haven't read The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, now is the perfect time to do it. An incredibly thought-provoking read set up in small chapters so you can read for 10 minutes or two hours. Each chapter brings about a different possibility of what can happen with a simple decision made. I find it to be one of the most inspirational books that I have ever read.

“Also, Trust by Hernan Diaz is a novel that features tales of extreme wealth and capitalism, told in long vignettes from different points of view and timelines. The stories somehow intertwine and lead to one another without you even realizing it. By the end you will want to start all over again – that is, after you Google the book to death wondering if it was a true story. As an

avid reader and audio book listener, I recommend getting the book for this one.”

Dale Andrews: “My favorite book series that I have read in the past few months is Fourth Wing and its sequel Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros. The world building was fantastic, the enemies-to-lovers romance was steamy and believable, and it is the first time in a long while that I actually bought into the female main character’s story FICTION FOCUSED ON FAMILY Houston writer Catherine Gentry recommends arc/development Family Family by Laurie Frankel and The Sweet Spot by Amy Poeppel as engaging spring rather than trudg- break reads. "Both books I'm recommending deal with family and love and offer insight and understanding into how families are formed and sustain us with love, often unexpecting through tired edly," Catherine says. tropes… Did I Stacy Humphries: “Iona Iverson's Rules for mention dragons?! So good! The author truly Commuting by Clare Pooley would make an did a fabulous job, and I could not put either engaging Spring Break read regardless of book down!” whether you are traveling or just staying home Melanie Margolis: “I enjoyed Rebecca and relaxing. This book is a light story of a group Makkai’s I Have Some Questions for You, a of complete strangers who commute on the mystery set in a boarding school. The protagosame train every morning. After breaking the nist is a podcaster who returns to her former unwritten rule of not talking to strangers on the school two decades after graduating to teach a train, they develop friendships that change each class. She and her students attempt to solve a of them in small and big ways. I loved the difmurder that took place there when she was a ferent characters, the well-paced plot, and student. The narration is unusual because the themes around the power of friendship and comprotagonist speaks directly to an absent charmunity. A light read perfect for a vacation.” acter, her former teacher and mentor. The Patricia Hammond: “I’m re-reading The book addresses misogyny, sexual assault, Josephine B. Trilogy by Sandra Gulland. After racism, and the flaws of the justice system seeing Napoleon with the family over Christmas while the main character examines her own break, I remembered her story to be just as interlife in a new light. Makkai is a skilled storyesting as his. I enjoy Gulland’s writing and the teller and wordsmith. I also recommend her journal entry-style format. Josephine was a fasbook The Hundred-Year House.”

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cinating historical figure in her own right.”

Catherine Gentry, Memorial area writer and teacher with Writers in the Schools: “Family Family by Laurie Frankel and The Sweet Spot

by Amy Poeppel are great choices for Spring Break reads. Both books I'm recommending deal with family and love and offer insight and understanding into how families are formed and sustain us with love, often unexpectedly. Family Family by Laurie Frankel focuses on adoption and motherhood in our modern world. The dialogue sparkles and the characters make you want to join them on further adventures as Frankel reminds us that families offer love and support no matter how they're made. This book is filled with humor and compassion, two things we could always use more of, and I recommend it for a great read.

“Beautifully written, The Sweet Spot by Amy Poeppel is witty and fun. When a baby brings together three unrelated women and their complicated lives, Poeppel invites us to consider the meaning of family and its role in our lives. With a warmhearted approach to the chaos of family life, Poeppel creates characters who are simultaneously humorous and endearing. Such a joy to read!”

Michelle Juden: “My recommendation is The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise by Colleen Oakley. This was a fun, multi-generational story. It had the vibe of Driving Miss Daisy meets Thelma & Louise. There was fun dialogue along with thought-provoking situations that made it very enjoyable.”

Karen Walker: “I recently read and enjoyed The Lake House by Kate Morton. This is a mystery about a kidnapped boy set in Cornwall, England. There are two main characters. One is a young, female detective who tries to find out the history of an old mansion, and the other is a young girl who grew up in the mansion as the book goes back and forth between time periods.

I like all of Kate Morton’s books.

“I also loved The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, and it is the start of a series.

This is a British mystery series set in a retirement home in the English countryside. The main characters are four retirees who solve murders and cold cases. I actually listened to this on Audible, and it’s so good and hilarious as well.

“The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley: I just finished this light rom-com with an eclectic cast of characters.”

Stacy Humphries: “Broken Horses by Brandi Carlile (audiobook). A must-listen audiobook if you like Brandi Carlile's voice/songs. She digs deep into the challenges of her upbringing, the tension between her faith/religion and her queerness, her intense emotional attachments to different people, and her phenomenal rise in the music business from an ‘other’ to a somebody. The big surprise was that she provides one or two songs at the end of most of her chapters and then provides a full 1 hour 45 min ‘chapter’ of music at the end of the book. Would be great

FASCINATING HISTORICAL FICTION “If you’re heading to the mountains or just wish you were, then Go As a River by Shelley Read would be a great book to read over Spring Break," says West U resident Michele Carlin. This is a good pick if you love historical fiction.

on a plane, during a long car ride, or while relaxing on the beach.”

Enjoy your break, whether you are traveling or enjoying time at home, and let me know what stellar reads you enjoyed.

Editor’s note: If you love to read and would be interested in sharing your recommendations for future Buzz articles, email us at info@thebuzzmagazines.com to be added to Cindy Burnett’s email list.

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NEIGHBORS

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by Sharon Albert Brier, staff writer

Rumor Has It Penguins, polar plunge, and more.

Susan Miller’s home for 12 days was with the Traveling Aggies on the National Geographic Explorer to Antarctica, the seventh continent she has visited. Although the itinerary was subject to change, due to the weather, the many stops included Brown Bluff, Snow Hill Island – the site of a Swedish expedition 1901-1903 – Barrientos Island to see thousands of penguins, and Cierva Cove, a highlight for hiking where they saw a pod of humpback whales. The iceberegs were majestic and unique, and a pod of orcas that swam alongside the ship for an hour was a killer of a ride. Another surprise was just how warm the summer there was – 30 degrees.

And she took the polar plunge into the 30degree Arctic Ocean.

City of lights. Let’s do Paris in December again! Kitty Strain, daughter Sarah Strain, and son Sam Strain and fiancée Nicole Acevedo enjoyed Paris in December so much in 2022 that it was worth a repeat in 2023. They rented an apartment near Notre Dame for six days. Besides the requisite shopping on Champs-Élysées and Rue Montorgueil, the Hotel Costes Bar was a favorite spot for music and people-watching as well as Ralph’s Restaurant and the Ritz Paris.

They marveled in the beauty of the Eiffel Tower’s colorful light show for five minutes on the hour. Another highlight was the show at Moulin Rouge. Stay tuned for next year – will it be a new place or an encore?

Exclusive trip. It was by invitation only from Dean Dalton Tours Custom Music and Art Travel. Roberta Grossman and Shelly Cyprus went on an opera tour to see a performance of The Ring Cycle performed in Brisbane. By a random chance on the way to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, they met an opera star of The Ring Cycle on a river cruise (he portrays Siegfried). They had a 6 a.m. behind-the-scenes tour of the Sydney Opera House and later saw Swan Lake there at a normal time. The gals toured three wineries with wine tastings, saw the Australian Zoo, and cuddled and petted kangaroos and koalas at the Healesville Sanctuary in Melbourne. Shelly was brave when she let a python wrap around her neck. It was a wildly exciting trip.

ARCTIC ACHIEVEMENT During a trip with the Traveling Aggies on the National Geographic Explorer to Antarctica, Susan Miller took the polar plunge into the 30-degree Arctic Ocean. Antarctica marked the seventh continent she has visited.

Sundancing. The fifth annual girls’ trip to Sundance Film Festival did not disappoint.

Vicky Dyer-Smith’s second home in Park City, Utah was the hub. Vicky, Sharon Cordes, Sue Feinberg, Michele Hosko, Frances Rubin, and yours truly went on a sleigh ride to a yurt. While the six of us thought we would be the only ones on the sleigh, there were indeed 30. The Vikingthemed yurt had whiskey shots served on a ski to pour in your glogg to warm your insides. A piano player added to the atmosphere as the gourmet meal exceeded expectations with dessert served inside a stone from a Nordic country. Viking hats were available for photo opps. Several of the 10 Sundance movies they saw were too edgy for the group; however, the movie Thelma was an exception.

End and beginning. Sam and Omana Abraham welcomed the new year in Las Vegas.

They saw America’s Got Talent superstars at the Luxor Hotel and enthusiastically complied with the signs that said Applause. On December 30th before their trip, they welcomed 12 world travelers from different backgrounds to talk about their backgrounds and travels and to enjoy an exotic 4 p.m. champagne tea. It was hardly just tea since

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tempura, grilled quail, and beef cutlets were served.

No wonder the guests stayed until after 8 p.m.

Glitz and glam. A midnight champagne toast and balloon drop brought in 2024 with delight at the themed Studio 54 at Pier 6 Seafood & Oyster House in San Leon. After seafood dishes supreme, Barbara and Jay Files disco’d the night away surrounded by black and gold balloons with a waterfront view to watch the fireworks on a clear night.

Cozy, worldly New Year’s. Rachel Messina and husband Victor Yang settled in at their lake house in Lake Arthur, Louisiana (about 30 miles past Lake Charles) with adult children, grandchildren, and friends for a traditional dinner of corned beef, cabbage, potato casserole, and black-eyed peas, and watched New Year’s around the world on TV. Lots of cousins of all ages got to mingle at the beach. At midnight, they participated in the Spanish tradition of consuming 12 grapes at each “bell” strike.

MORE ONLINE See Rumor Has It at thebuzzmagazines.com for additional photos. Have some good news to share?

Email us at info@thebuzzmagazines.com.

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Cindy Burnett

ARTS

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by Cindy Burnett, staff writer

Buzz Reads

Five picks for March

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

Becoming Madam Secretary by Stephanie Dray (historical fiction) – Stephanie Dray brings to life Frances Perkins, the first woman to serve as a U.S. cabinet member. Appointed by Franklin Delano Roosevelt as Secretary of Labor, she is the mother of Social Security and helped create and launch FDR’s New Deal. Becoming Madam Secretary is an enthralling story about a woman who would not be cowed by the men around her and who paved the way for future women to serve in high-powered government positions. I loved learning so much about her and her role as Secretary of Labor, her professional relationship with FDR, and the time period following the Depression. Dray includes an Author’s Note detailing what small things changed for narrative flow purposes. I highly recommend this one.

The Framed Women of Ardemore House by Brandy Schillace (mystery/thriller) – Following the loss of her mother, her job, and her marriage, American Jo Jones heads to North Yorkshire to live in the family estate, one that she did not know existed but that she inherited when her mother died. While she has always struggled to fit in with other people, in the United Kingdom, she is not sure which makes her stand out more: being American or her neurodivergence. When a body is discovered in her cottage soon after she arrives, Jo realizes that she is in danger – personally, and because she is now a suspect. Schillace skillfully and authentically portrays a character on the spectrum and how her characteristics help solve the mystery as well as how she is perceived by others. This provides such an interesting glimpse into what life is like for Jo and those with whom she interacts. This is a start to a series, and I am already looking forward to book 2.

The Hunter by Tana French (mystery/thriller) – Tana French returns with a stunning mystery set in a small town in Ireland.

Cal Hooper, a retired Chicago police officer, moved to west Ireland to build furniture and enjoy a peaceful life. While there, he has become a mentor to a troubled and angry teenager named

Trey whose family has been struggling since her brother died and her dad Johnny abandoned them. However, when Johnny unexpectedly returns, accompanied by a wealthy friend, and the duo claims there is gold in the nearby Irish hills, WHAT TO READ This month’s selections include two memoirs, one on prothe town is turned upside cessing grief and the other one focused on identity, a start to a new mystery down. French’s strong series starring a neurodivergent character, a compelling mystery set in Ireland, and a historical-fiction book about Frances Perkins, the first woman to serve sense of place and as a U.S. cabinet member. authentic characters (memoir) – This starkly honest and poignant carry the story, and the themes of revenge, family, memoir chronicles Taffa’s experiences growing love, and what people will do to protect their up in the 1970s and 1980s while navigating the families are powerfully portrayed. The story is sharp disconnect between mainstream culture beautifully written, a character-driven tale versus and her own native identity as a mixed tribe a fast-paced one, and readers will be swept into Native girl – born on the California Yuma reserthe lives of the town’s residents as well as the vation and reared in Navajo territory in New book’s strong setting. While this is a follow-up to Mexico. With grandparents who, as citizens of her last novel The Searcher, The Hunter can easily the Quechan Nation and Laguna Pueblo tribe, be read as a standalone, which I personally did. were sent to Indian boarding schools run by white I Promise It Won’t Always Hurt Like This missionaries and parents who participated in govby Clare Mackintosh (memoir/nonfiction) – I ernmental job training off the reservation, she Promise It Won't Always Hurt Like This is a surgrew up with the message that assimilation was vival guide for anyone who has lost a loved one. the path to pursue. But when she reached adultThe book is structured around 18 assurances on hood, she began to question whether assimilating grief in simple-to-digest sections which can be really accomplished the goals her family thought read individually because when someone is kneeit did. The strength of the book is how Taffa deep in grieving, it can be hard to focus for very blends her own personal narrative and family hislong. Esteemed and bestselling thriller-writer tory with general Native American history and Clare Mackintosh lost her five-week-old son 18 Native American history pertaining to the years ago and quickly realized that grief doesn’t American southwest as well as Native moveoften follow the neatly labeled stages that books ments in the U.S. to reclaim Native lands, culfrequently suggest it does. Everyone grieves difture, and history. I read this book in less than a ferently, and for the author, there was no preparday and learned so much; her story is one I will ing for the anger, guilt, overwhelming sadness, not soon forget. sleeplessness, pain of anniversaries, and other issues she experienced following the loss of her Editor’s note: Southside Place resident Cindy son. As someone who has experienced significant Burnett also writes our weekly Page Turners colloss in the last couple of years, this book spoke to umn at thebuzzmagazines.com. She hosts the me in a way no other book has, validating the award-winning Thoughts from a Page Podcast, is emotions and sadness that I still regularly endure. co-creator of the Houston literary event series I highly recommend it for anyone who has perConversations from the Page, runs the Instagram sonally suffered a loss and could use a realistic account @thoughtsfromapage, and regularly speaks roadmap for how to move forward. to groups about books.

Whiskey Tender by Deborah Jackson Taffa

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 28

Enter The Buzz 2024 Photo Contest Deadline May 15, 2024

Submit photos for our 19th annual Photo Contest.

Deadline May 15.

To submit photos, and for contest rules, visit thebuzzmagazines.com/photocontest Winning photos will be published in our July issue and on our website.

To view our 2023 winners, visit thebuzzmagazines.com/2023-photo-contest Our grand prize winner will receive a Canon EOS R10 mirrorless camera with a RF-S18150mm F3.5-6.3 IS STM lens kit from Houston Camera Exchange. Also, a two-night stay in a deluxe suite at the Blossom Hotel Houston, plus a $200 dining credit to their new restaurant, MoLihua, and a $150 credit to the Total You Spa inside of the hotel.

Sponsored by

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 29

KIDS

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by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

Buzz Baby

Rodeo-ing with little ones

Buzz Baby is a column about life with little ones.

Writer Annie McQueen is a mother of four children under the age of 9.

S

ince 1932, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo has been not only an event in our city; it is an annual tradition. From the games and food at the carnival to the world-renowned Rodeo events, there is something for everyone.

Alyssa Pratka, a seasoned rodeo-goer and mom of two, Eden, 5, and Owen, 8, holds many fond memories of attending Rodeo with her family. “[Harris] and I have been taking our kids every year since they were born, and it is so incredible to see their faces in awe of the animals, the games, and the shows,” said Alyssa.

She has been a volunteer on the Mutton Bustin’ committee for over 12 years.

A favorite memory was when her son, Owen, rode in the big arena in the Mutton Bustin’ event and won at the age of 5. This has remained a highlight for the family, especially when he was interviewed on the jumbo-tron.

“It's an experience we will never forget,” she said, smiling.

Alyssa shared her insights and best tips for making the most of a day at the Rodeo with small kids in tow. She says, first things first, be sure to plan ahead. “I try to make everything as smooth as possible to avoid any potential ‘hangry’ episodes or kid meltdowns,” she says.

To streamline the experience, she recommends downloading the free HLSR app (RodeoHouston on the app store) before attending and loading up your carnival and food tickets. On the app, you will find schedules, ticketing information, rules, and more. “Skipping the lines is a game-changer,” she said. “Purchase tickets ahead to walk right onto the grounds and find carnival ticket discounts.”

She also plans their outfits ahead of time and orders personalized rodeo accessories, like monogrammed bandanas. These accessories make for cute photo opportunities and show off some Texan flare. However, comfort plays an important role in a smooth day for young kids, especially since it is a long day. “Rodeo boots are so cute,” said Alyssa. “But we brought our son in

sneakers for years before he would wear boots all day.”

Opting for light clothing and comfortable shoes will ensure that kids stay cool while running around.

Alyssa’s go-to hack for the food scene with small kids is to skip the longer lines at the big tent. The Pratka family usually opts for the smaller side vendor tents for food.

“They have plenty of options for hot GO HANDS-FREE Alyssa Pratka (pictured, with daughter Eden), a mom of two and longtime volunteer for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, shares insight on packdogs, popcorn, fun- ing light and going hands-free to the Rodeo grounds with a baby carrier or light stroller. nel cakes, and cotArriving early is another key strategy in ton candy,” said Alyssa.

Alyssa’s playbook. "We always go right when it When it comes to wrangling kids, Alyssa opens to make parking bearable," she said. By stresses the importance of going hands-free. She parking in the yellow lot near the main entrance used a baby carrier for one year at Rodeo, allowoff Kirby, families can access Kids Country, the ing her to move through the crowds with her petting zoo, and other attractions with ease. baby. Strollers are allowed, but large strollers are Alyssa said her family’s go-to spots are Kids hard to maneuver in the big crowds. Consider a Country, the petting zoo, and the carnival (find wagon or umbrella stroller. Once inside NRG, maps on rodeohouston.com). “From rides to there are dedicated stroller parking areas where games to Mutton Bustin’, the carnival is where parents must leave them during the show. While all the action is,” she said. And when it comes the Rodeo does not have a clear-bag policy, only to Rodeo events, the Pratka family enjoys the small bags or backpacks are allowed (see rodeoChuck Wagon Races, Bull Riding, Mutton houston.com under guest services for more inforBustin’, and the Calf Scramble. mation). Pack efficiently.

The Tompkins family has also been venturing “My husband and I both bring one backpack to the Rodeo for years. Their hack is to utilize the and pack light,” she says. “Remember, you'll be Metro light rail. Alli Tompkins, a mom of three, carrying anything your children win [at the carsays they park at South Main Baptist Church and nival], too.” hop on from the lot. “This is our big hack,” said She suggests packing necessities like sunAlli. “It is the light rail before the carnival rides. screen, refillable water bottles, and snacks to The kids love it, and it is less hectic and expenhelp minimize costs and ensure everyone stays sive than parking at the stadium,” said Alli. hydrated throughout the day. A bottle of water A few other tips that might come in handy is anywhere from $5-$10 at NRG, so bringing a for taking kids to the Rodeo are: water bottle that can be refilled at the water • Arrive early: Arriving when the Rodeo fountains will save money.

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RODEO TIME IN HOUSTON Left photo: The Tompkins family parks at South Main Baptist Church and rides the Metro light rail to the carnival, skipping the parking lines. Pictured is Warren Tompkins on the Metro. Middle photo: Georgia McQueen ventured to her first Rodeo at three months old. Right photo: Owen Pratka won Mutton Bustin’ inside the big arena in 2022. Pictured are parents Alyssa and Harris with Owen and Eden.

opens can significantly reduce wait times for rides and attractions. Weekends are popular, so aim for a weekday if possible.

• Check times: Familiarize yourself with the carnival schedules, rides, and hours before heading down to Rodeo.

• Consider a Fast Pass ($30/rider): One Buzz parent suggests investing in a fast pass, which grants expedited access to rides and attractions, saving time and minimizing waiting in line.

Only valid day of purchase. Available at any onsite ticket box.

• Plan activities: Keep an eye on the schedule for special events like Agventure and Fun on the Farm, which offer interactive and educational experiences for kids.

• Explore animal attractions: In addition to carnival rides, there are plenty of other attractions to explore, such as animal exhibits and agricultural displays.

• Rodeo concert volume: Consider bringing baby headphones if taking a little one into a concert.

For families gearing up for a day at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, these tips

will hopefully serve as a road map for navigating the excitement while keeping young cowboys and cowgirls happy. There’s no wrong way to Rodeo, but with advance planning and a flexible attitude, families can fully enjoy the magic of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Editor’s note: For more information and to plan your visit, see rodeohouston.com. For more on HLSR, see Karen Vine Fuller’s story in this issue on the Rodeo School Art and, for the 21+ crowd, see Dai Huynh’s story in this issue on the Rodeo Wine Garden.

Family-Friendly Rodeo Highlights The Houston Rodeo grounds are open daily, Feb. 27-March 17. The opening time differs depending on the day, but the grounds close at midnight. A ticket for the Rodeo grounds is $20 for adults and $10 for kids (ages 3-12). Here are some family-friendly highlights: Carnival The quintessential Houston Rodeo, with rides, games, and food galore! Where else can you get everything deep-fried?

The Junction This kid-friendly area, located outside at the east end of NRG Park, has lots of activities for the whole family – exhibits are free unless otherwise noted.

• Fun on the Farm: This free exhibit is run by volunteers and gives kids a chance to experience farm chores such as “milking a cow” (not a real cow), gathering eggs, planting, harvesting crops, and feeding pretend chickens. As you exit the farm, the children get a token to spend on a treat at the General Store. Finally, they pass by “Goat Mountain,” where real goats frolic on a small fenced-in hill. Open 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

• The Junction Carnival: This kid-friendly carnival area opens at 11 a.m. Monday-Friday, and 10 a.m. on weekends, and stays open until midnight.

• Mutton Bustin’: Kids ages 5-6 can try their hand at Mutton Bustin’ inside the Junction. While riding inside NRG Stadium requires advance registration for a chance to participate, The Junction is run on a first come, first served basis. Open from 11 a.m.-7 p.m., with a performance every hour, on the hour. Parents register upon arrival, and the cost is $20 per ride. Riders must not exceed 55 pounds.

• Pig Races: Groups of energetic piglets race every day at 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 5:30 p.m., and 6:30 p.m. Watching the race is free.

• Extreme Dogs: Talented pups perform tricks and stunts every day at 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 4 p.m., and 6 p.m. Watching the performance is free.

Agventure Located in Hall A of NRG Center, Agventure exhibits are free and open daily from 9 a.m.-9 p.m.

• We’re Small Y’all Barn: See and touch adorable miniature horses and donkeys and learn more about how their tininess came to be.

• Petting Zoo: Have a hands-on experience with those furry faces. For $2, visitors can purchase food to feed goats, pigs, lambs, and more.

• Other Agventure sites include: the honeybee exhibit, birthing center, breed row, fisheries, horticulture exhibit, poultry, rabbits, and pony rides.

Editor’s note: Times, dates, and prices are subject to change – check rodeohouston.com for updates. Yee-haw, y’all!

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 31

TRAVEL

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by Tracy L. Barnett, staff writer

Travel Buzz

The Bellaire Birthday Boys go to Sea

I

t’s been more than 40 years since a handful of boys, all of them the sons of immigrants from India, became friends. They would see each other at school, holidays, and community functions, and they gradually formed a bond that would carry them from their teens, up through the recent celebration of their 60th birthdays and beyond.

Sandeep “Sandy” Seth and Matt Hoffman were roommates in college. Matt married Sandy’s sister’s roommate, Bela, and so was adopted into Houston’s Indian community and into this growing circle of friends. Holly, a travel nurse we featured in 2021, married Sandy and likewise became an honorary member of the club. As time passed, a dozen or so friends stayed in close contact, many of them settling in Houston, with four living in Bellaire.

Over the years, they celebrated together their weddings, career successes, and the births, milestones, and graduations of their children. The friend group is now multigenerational. Their kids grew up as friends, went off to college, and they are now celebrating together at their own weddings. And so when Sandy and Matt started to approach their 60th birthdays at the end of 2023, their wives realized that a big celebration was in order.

Also turning 60 in approaching months was Utpal Mehta, so his wife Samita was added to the planning committee. And of course they couldn’t leave out Utpal’s cousin Rajiv Pandya, also with an upcoming birthday. He and his wife Hina were on board as well. So with some of the couples’ grown children and their partners joining in, along with Hina’s brother Apu Thekdi, also from Bellaire, and a few more longtime friends from the group, the merry band of 24 people walked the gangplank to the deck of the brand-new, 16-story, eye-poppingly luxurious Celebrity Ascent on the last week of 2023.

The ship would be sailing out of Ft. Lauderdale to Puerto Rico, Tortola, and St. Kitts. The travelers began arriving for the weeklong cruise on Friday before the Sunday departure, giving themselves time to integrate and enjoy a little of the city before heading off on their grand adventure. But by the time the group

CARIBBEAN WONDERS Inside the caves of the Baths of Virgin Gorda are (from left) Sandeep "Sandy" Seth, Matt Hoffman, Utpal Mehta, Amit Desai, Rajiv Pandya, Vinny Khosla, and Apu Thekdi.

had stepped aboard and begun to peruse their new accommodations, it became clear that the major highlight would be none of the destinations, but rather the ship itself.

“The decor was phenomenal, the food was amazing, the dining rooms were beautiful, the bars and venues on the ship were gorgeous,” recalled Sandy. “The rooms were really cool; instead of a balcony, the rooms have a floor to ceiling window that can be lowered halfway, so you can have the feeling of being outside or when sleeping, you can listen to the waves and get a little bit of breeze.”

Best of all for the group, perhaps, was the pickleball court. Their first day at sea they had a pickleball tournament, which remains a muchmentioned highlight.

Utpal Mehta, one of the birthday boys,

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 32

chuckled at the memory of their tournament.

“Everyone in our group kept talking about their skills in pickleball,” he said. “But we were up against these young tennis players from Colombia who had never played the sport and they smoked us.”

The first night was New Year’s Eve, a fantastic ship-wide celebration with everyone partying into the early hours of the morning. Luckily the next day was a day at sea, for recovery. For the remaining nights, they decided to celebrate the birthdays one by one. So by the time they got to Puerto Rico, they’d already celebrated the first birthday boy: Sandy.

It was his first time in Puerto Rico, and he loved it. They began with a several-hour walking tour of the charming colonial capital city of San Juan, learning a bit of the island’s history

THE GOOD LIFE The multigenerational group of 24 decided to cruise together in celebration of the 60th birthdays of Sandy Seth, Matt Hoffman, Rajiv Pandya, and Utpal Mehta. Top photo: The Bellaire group and friends at the beach on the island of Virgin Gorda after swimming into shore from the catamaran, seen in the background; bottom left: on the top of the catamaran; bottom right: decked out for the final night party on the cruise.

while taking in the Plaza de Armas, the city’s central plaza, the governor’s mansion, and two impressive colonial-era forts, Castillo San Felipe del Morro and Castillo de San Cristóbal.

“I loved the architecture in town, and the way it’s painted; the houses are super colorful, and the windows are actually doors,” recalled Sandy.

“They’re huge, so they’re very breezy, and they really rely on the breeze for cooling. The fort was huge and beautiful, and it was a lot more hilly than I thought it would be, so there were great views of the water and other portions of Puerto Rico.”

Next it was on to Tortola, in the British Virgin Islands, where Holly had booked a pri-

vate catamaran called the Bad Kitty with captain and crew and an open bar with quarts of the delicious local drink known as the Painkiller, the official drink of the British Virgin Islands, with pineapple and orange juice, coconut cream, and copious rum. Their excursion was like a dream, taking them cruising through the islands, snorkeling in the crystalline waters and to the Baths of Virgin Gorda, a natural wonder composed of a series of caverns leading to secret rock pools and opening out into the majestic Cathedral Room.

Snorkeling in Bight Bay around the Five Indians rock formations was another standout experience as they entered an underwater world

of gently waving corals and colorful tropical fish – and even an elusive sea turtle at one point.

Their final shore excursion was on the island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis, where part of the group took a bus tour of the whole island to see points of interest like Brimstone Hill Fortress, Romney Manor, several churches and Independence Square. Sandy missed that, unfortunately, as he was taken down by a cold virus that was running through their midst. His buddy Rajiv had been sick for the first few days of their trip but by that time he had rallied. He and wife Hina, Utpal and Samita and others took a tour of the islands, while some opted to relax at a private beach. (continued on page 34)

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 33

PUERTO RICAN SUNSET The Seth/Pandya/Mehta/Hoffman clan in front of the colonial-era fort, Castillo San Felipe del Morro.

“We were really surprised to learn that Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson’s families owned sugarcane plantations there,” recalled Rajiv.

Other sights in St. Kitts included the ruins of the Wingfield Sugar Plantation; the richly historic Romney Manor, once the site of the Indigenous Kalinago or Carib leader Chief Tegreman’s home village; and Bloody Point, where the British settlers staged a massacre of Tegreman and his people.

Back on the ship, the friends would divide up and go to different activities during the day, and would meet together for meals in the dining room, where they had several tables grouped together. Then at night they’d attend shows and events together and, of course, celebrate their

(continued from page 33)

birthdays. There was comedy, acrobatic and Broadway-type shows, and a first-rate lineup of music presentations, always with a variety to choose from.

One night they gathered in the ship’s nightclub, where Holly brought an ample playlist she had put together from the ’80s – the decade that the friend group had come of age – and passed it to the DJ, who indulged them by making it an unforgettable night of dancing.

“We’ve done trips together – Iceland, Scotland, Costa Rica – but just the guys,” said Rajiv. “This is one of the few times where all the families got together and went as a group, and I have to say, as much as I enjoyed the others, I enjoyed this one more.”

Like Rajiv and others in the group, Samita

felt the highlight was just spending time together and reconnecting. “As you get older, each person changes, and you evolve. What’s nice to see is that as we’ve gotten older, the commitment to this friendship hasn’t changed.”

Hina agreed. “This group has known each other for so long we keep repeating the same stories over and over again, and even the events we weren’t there for, we feel like we were there.”

But as much as they all have changed over time, they’ve also stayed the same, Samita said.

“They still tell the same corny jokes, they still behave like 20-somethings at times – that’s the essence of who they are in this relationship, I think. They’re greyer and they’re carrying a few more pounds, but these are the same people they always were.”

Tips from our Travelers By the group Worth the splurge: Private catamaran excursion with snorkeling and sightseeing in the British Virgin Islands.

Don’t miss: Anything on board the Celebrity Ascent!

Favorite restaurants: Le Petit Chef animated dining experience aboard the ship.

Packing: Don’t overpack. You’ll never wear as many outfits as you think you will. Bring several swimsuits.

Don’t bring: A book. You’ll be having too much fun around the ship to read it!

Don’t forget: Your pickleball paddles and shoes for the top deck tournaments!

Local favorite: A local drink called the Painkiller. Dangerously delicious!

Not really worth the trouble: Ship-sponsored excursions. Don't be afraid to plan your own if they sound exciting!

Unexpected hit: Our good friend Amit Desai beating 40 other golfers to win the Celebrity Ascent chipping competition!

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 34

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 35

DINING

by Dai Huynh, staff writer

Chef’s Corner

Corn Dogs and Vino Pairing rodeo food and wine Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

F

or some people, the Houston Rodeo kicked off in November with the Rodeo Uncorked!

International Wine Competition. That’s when Tamara Atkins started planning for her wine and carnival food seminar.

You heard right – award-winning wine with deep-fried Oreos and corn dogs. Wine and food pairings don’t have to be fancy. Some of the best combos are with casual grub. Plus, these Stetsondonned oenophiles are believers that wine goes with everything. Tamara and her guests have many belly laughs at this popular seminar. It’s hard not to have a good time eating corn dogs while sipping pinot noir. That’s the vino the Memorial-area resident recommends with this carnival staple. Pinot noir’s light-to-medium weight, smooth tannins, and juicy berry profile are universally corn dog-friendly.

Tamara’s seminar is one of 16 held at the Champion Wine Garden presented by Frost Bank during the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo at NRG Park, taking place through March 17. The wine garden in the Carruth Plaza is a verdant refuge featuring live entertainment and award-winning wine by the glass and bottle.

Tamara was one of the original 300 members who helped start the Rodeo Uncorked! competition in 2003. Five years later, they pitched a tent and called it the “wine garden.” It didn’t catch on right away.

Just 10 years ago, Wine Garden Chairman Lindsay Wied stood outside, ringing a cowbell.

She was a rookie volunteer back then, and “it was my job to convince people to come in,” the mom of three recalls, adding that now the wine garden frequently reaches total capacity with couples and families who consider it a retreat.

Lindsay has recently noticed parents dropping their teenagers off at the carnival and making a beeline to the wine garden, where they can unwind over a cheese or charcuterie platter.

Initially, the wine garden offered eight wines by the glass and bottle. But the little pop-up tent has morphed into a two-acre oasis with seven tents and two live entertainment stages featuring upand-coming Texas talents. Nowadays, guests can sample upwards of 77 award-winning wines from $6 to $16 by the glass or ranging from $26 to $130

WINE DOWN Friends gather under starlight skies at the Champion Wine Garden to sample more than 75 winning wines from the Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition.

for the bottle. The wine menu has expanded exponentially, so several months before her presentation on March 8, Tamara diligently identified which whites and reds go best with carnival fare.

A fan favorite, her program typically sells out. But, even if you can’t make it to the seminar, the wine garden allows attendees to bring in food so you can personalize your own carnival food and wine pairing. “We encourage it,” Chairman Lindsay says. “You can go anywhere on the grounds with a bottle or glass of wine except into the stadium.

You can take it shopping, to the carnival, and to the exhibits. You can even, in the state of Texas, cork your bottle and take it home. You just can’t take it in the stadium. If you want to take wine home, purchase it after the concert.”

One to consider is Houston-based Nice Winery, which garnered this year’s prestigious and coveted Top All-Around Winery at the blind-tasting Rodeo Uncorked! competition.

Meanwhile, its "Ariana" Charity Wine for OpHeart, a white blend of grenache blanc and viognier grapes from Washington State, won a silver medal (sales of each bottle benefit the nonprofit OpHeart, which assists babies with congenital heart defects). Nice Winery cofounder and certified sommelier Ryan Levy was

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 36

tasked with kicking off this year’s seminar program with a wine and artisan chocolate pairing, which sold out a month before the Rodeo started. Still, Ryan, a Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo college scholarship recipient in the early ’90s didn’t hesitate to share a few tips.

“A good rule of thumb is to start with very high-quality chocolate. Just like wine, chocolate can be made in small batches without the addition of emulsifiers, preservatives, milk powders, and fillers,” says the Rice University graduate and winemaker, now 48.

What about the adage of pairing light chocolates with lighter wines and dark chocolates with darker, heavier wines?

“My rule of thumb is to pair similar flavors together,” says Ryan. “Chardonnay can be creamy and buttery and pairs well with caramelfilled chocolate. Pinot noir pairs well with raspberry-infused dark chocolate. I love to pair my Nice Winery Malbec with dark chocolate with a kick of chipotle chili flakes. When in doubt, opt for darker chocolates with a minimum cacao content of 55 percent.”

With the popularity of the chocolate and wine pairing, the organizers added a how-to on wine with seasonal cookies (aka Girl Scout cookies).

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

A RETREAT AT RODEO Many rodeo-goers consider the Wine Garden a retreat. Pictured, clockwise: Rodeo Uncorked! wine expert Tamara Atkins with her granddaughter, Emily, in the Wine Garden, which is family-friendly to attend but 21+ to drink or attend seminars; a couple dances at one of two live stages; Texas wine expert and Spanish wine scholar Kelly Limbaugh; wine is available by the glass and by the bottle at the Wine Garden.

This was challenging, admits Kelly Limbaugh, a specialist in Texas wine and vice chairman of the wine competition committee – wine entries.

The Memorial resident didn’t take the easy route. Pairing seasonal cookies with only dessert wines would have been a no-brainer. She wanted diversification. “So, there are congruent pairings, which means pairing sweet with sweet. You also have contrasting pairing, where you have a sweet and salty. Of the wines I selected to pair with my seasonal cookies, some are contrasting, and some are congruent. For instance, I have a lemon-flavored cookie I’m pairing with a wine that has a lot of lemon flavor. In another, I have an oatmeal cookie with a peanut butter filling. I’m pairing it with zinfandel, which typically has jammy flavors.

I’m going for contrast here: a peanut butter theme.”

Houston veteran wine expert Carl Chargois’s “Food and Wine Synergy” class will wrap up the

wine garden's educational portion on March 16.

It is a deep dive for people interested in taking the art of wine pairing to the next level. “People will learn which food and wine marry well. But it is also intended to help people understand what doesn’t work,” says the superintendent of Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition. “Why doesn’t it go well together?

What is a conflict on the palate?”

Most people have heard of the general food-andwine guideline: Pair red wine with red meat and white wine with white meat. “Well, we’re going to break that down and show off why,” Carl says.

Take, for example, an oily fish, such as an Alaskan king salmon, herring, or mackerel.

People say never to marry red wine with fish for a reason, Carl says. “With an oily fish, like mackerel, the tannins in red wine, like a young chianti, will conflict like crazy in your mouth. It

will taste like you’ve just licked a tin can. That’s one of the conflicts I’ll show you. But at the same time, oily fish – salmon and mackerel – pair well with softer reds such as pinot noir, depending on how you cook it.”

He'll also illustrate misconceptions. “I’ll show why butter and cream go well with red wine.

People think, ‘Oh, I have a brie cheese, and I must marry that with a chardonnay.’ Well, brie is very fatty. And a fatty flavor married to a fatty chardonnay will just taste like you’ve put a stick of butter in your mouth, and that’s not any fun.

What’s a better option? A merlot and pinot noir.

Remember how much you loved eating fresh strawberries dipped in whipped cream growing up? Same thing.”

In addition, Carl will highlight wines from this year’s featured region, Chile, on March 5.

In another, he’ll showcase (continued on page 38)

TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 37

Courtesy of Nice Winery

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

SIP AND SAVOR Pictured, clockwise: Rising Texas entertainers are featured at the Wine Garden; Tamara and Bill Atkins are among the original committee members of the Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition; Nice Winery cofounder Ryan Levy; these days, more than 1100 volunteers help run the Wine Garden. (continued from page 37) several top sakes in the

Rodeo Uncorked! competition. Meanwhile, Ryan, along with the chocolate and wine, has a program on pairing wine with tacos on March 3. Tamara’s husband, Bill, hosts one of the most popular seminars, wine and cheese, on March 6 and another on wine with Texas barbecue on

March 13. Find a complete list of all the seminars at the wine garden at bit.ly/42ClUyi. Tickets for seminars range from $65-110.

The Champion Wine Garden is open Mondays-Thursdays, 4-11 p.m., Fridays, 2 p.m.midnight, Saturdays, 11 a.m.-midnight, Sundays, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Admission to the

Wine Garden is free. All ages are welcome to enter (21+ to drink). See rodeohouston.com for a schedule of live music.

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

Special Events in the Wine Garden See rodeohouston.com/rodeo-uncorked-wine/champion-wine-garden for more.

Texas Wine Celebration, Feb. 28, 4:30-6:30 p.m. A complimentary tasting of Texas wines from the Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition. Open to anyone age 21 and older on the grounds. Free.

R&B Brunch, March 3, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. There is a food truck, a special Brunch Bubble Flight available for purchase, and a great band on stage. Free.

A Taste of Chile, March 5, 5-7 p.m. The Wine Garden Committee presents “A Taste of Chile” in the Hill Country Tent. Guests will taste seven wines from the featured region of Chile. $40. Register here: bit.ly/49RG6Ph Latin Brunch, March 10, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. There is a food truck, a special Brunch Bubble Flight available for purchase, and a great band on stage. Free.

Jazz Brunch, March 17, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. There is a food truck, a special Brunch Bubble Flight available for purchase, and a great band on stage. Free.

Winemakers Corner – On most days of the show, Winemakers Corner will have a winery or distributor representative offering samples and providing information on one or more wines.

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by Todd Freed, staff writer

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n the wake of a sensational football season, the Lamar Texans are sending a haul of talent to play collegiate football. The Texans had 13 players make their commitments official on National Signing Day. “I think it’s an incredible group of seniors and the best I’ve been around since I started coaching at Lamar,” said Texans head football coach Mike Lindsey.

“These are young men who make excellent grades and do things the right way both off and on the playing field.”

As for high academics, leading the way is Brown University signee Jadon Garza-Pender.

“Jadon is an outstanding player who ranks fifth in his class,” said Lindsey. “He will be a computer science major at a school that has the nation’s premiere computer science program. Another one of our outstanding student-athletes is defensive end Robert Jones, who will play for Davidson University in North Carolina.”

Meantime, the Texans have a pair of signees who’ll be suiting up for major football conferences with Lamar’s all-time leading receiver Tristen Brown signing with Vanderbilt University and defensive back Chris Boykins heading to Old Dominion. “The other thing we’re really proud of regarding our signees is that they attended HISD middle schools with most having gone to Pershing or Lanier,” added Lindsey.

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ed by highly recruited quarterback Karson Gordon, the SPC Episcopal Knights will be well represented at the collegiate level. Gordon, who is also a national track and field champion in the triple jump, signed to play for the UCLA Bruins. “He’s just a tremendous athlete and one of the best leaders to ever walk on this campus,” said former Episcopal football coach Steve Leisz.

Also heading to play for one of the so-called Power 5 conferences is Knights long-snapper Morrow Evans, who signed with Ohio State University. Morrow is the nation’s number one ranked long-snapper and recently played in the U.S Army All-American Bowl.

Knights cornerback Breylan Thompson chose Yale University over offers from many of the nation’s elite college football programs.

“Breylan had 20-plus offers, but his response was

BACK ON CAMPUS Former St. Thomas Eagles baseball star Cavan Biggio, who’s now entering his sixth season with the Toronto Blue Jays, had this jersey retired during a special ceremony at the school’s all-new Father Wilson Field. Joining Biggio for the ceremony were his parents Craig and Patty Biggio and brother Conor Biggio.

you go to Episcopal to go to schools like Yale. He’s our student body president and one of our best basketball players,” said Leisz.

Keeping it in the Ivy League is Knights 6-5, 290-pound offensive tackle Billy Wheless who signed with Brown University. Other Episcopal signees included long-snapper Anthony Saragusa to Charlotte University and cornerback Sean Thompson signed with Hendrix University in Arkansas. Plus, Knights offensive tackle Cullen Witt and wide receiver Jackson Ranucci signed as preferred walk-ons for Rice University.

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t was a happy homecoming for former St. Thomas Eagles baseball star Cavan Biggio who had his jersey number 23 retired during a special ceremony at the school’s all-new Father Wilson baseball field. A 2013 St. Thomas graduate, Biggio is now entering his sixth season with major league baseball’s Toronto Blue Jays. “It means the world to me honestly,” said Biggio. “I can remember being here at St. Thomas like it was yesterday, just going out there and playing with my friends and teammates.

“It’s just a huge honor especially at a program that has such a rich tradition,” added Biggio, who led St. Thomas to a pair of state championship in his varsity career before a standout college career at the University of Notre Dame. “To have the support of the St. Thomas community truly means a lot to me and looking at this amazing new stadium, the tradition is only going to

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continue to grow for this baseball program.”

The ceremony was meaningful as well for Cavan’s dad Craig Biggio, who himself coached baseball at St. Thomas for seven years after his Hall of Fame career with the Houston Astros.

“My emotions are a little bit of a roller coaster,” said Biggio. “Just seeing a lot of Cavan’s ex-teammates and players that I coached here is special.

As Cavan mentioned during his speech, he’s made memories and friends at St. Thomas that he’ll have the rest of his life. Obviously, every time he gets the opportunity to come to a baseball game and see his number out there on the outfield wall is pretty cool.”

Along with Cavan, the school also retired the number 17 jersey of Jeff McCurry, a class of ’88 graduate who was a sensational all-state player in both baseball and basketball at St. Thomas. The star pitcher helped lead San Jacinto College to a national championship before being drafted in 1990 by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Along with the Pirates, McCurry also pitched for Detroit, Colorado, and the hometown Houston Astros during his major league career.

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.

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SPORTS

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by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

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

Run at Rice A group of determined third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade girls from Wilchester Elementary School competed in the Girls on the Run 5K race at Rice University at the end of their season. Girls on the Run is a nonprofit that is focused on more than running – the girls meet in small teams and are trained by volunteers to build confidence and other skills through lessons and physical movement. They were up bright and early to run with their running buddies (many of whom were moms or dads) and they finished with smiles. The team was grateful for their coaches, Kelli Gault, Meredith Cramer, D’Lisia Bergeron, Summer Burke, and Emily Vanderbilt. Pictured are (front row, from left) Claire Taylor, Kinsley Pham, Claire Bui, Laine Higbie, Hadley Gault, Linden Vanderbilt, Olivia Fredstrom, Ainsley Vanderbilt, Katherine Urech, Lila McQueen, Ava Baker, Charlotte Cramer; (back row, from left) Cramer, Gault, Harper Adams, Charlotte Burke, Burke, and Vanderbilt.

Volleyball award A group of players have been making strides on the volleyball court. The St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School girls’ varsity volleyball team won the Greater Houston Volleyball Coaches Association Championship award.

They won the award for the second year running beating St. Laurence Catholic School in a closely fought contest. Throughout the season, the girls were taught the game positions, fundamentals, sportsmanship, serving, passing, setting, teamwork, hitting, conditioning, and everything that it takes to become a competitive volleyball player. Pictured (back row, from left) are coach Maeve Cusack, Hannah Summers, Camryn Love, Caroline Simpson, Seema Lam, Madeleine Elmore, Haylee Cross, coach Sandi Morales; (front row, from left) Lauren Lambert, Lizzie Haas, Sofia Corales, Ramsey Ramirez, and Jessie Whitley.

Bases loaded The Blue Anchor 9U baseball team capped off their fall season by winning the 2023 Texas Fall State Championships, earning them a promotion to the Majors division of Perfect Game Baseball. The players are (pictured, front row, from left) Maddox Granderson, Oliver Chen, Jack Jurgens, Eli Musher, Banks Dailey, Zain Thowfeek, Ewan Walker, Asher Levy, Everett Dooley, Henry Croley, Beckett Whitman; coaches are (pictured, back row, from left) Ted Walker (assistant coach), Elan Levy (assistant coach), Zach Dailey (assistant coach), and Rob Whitman (head coach).

Competing in the highly competitive Perfect Game Baseball USA Fall League, they secured third and second place in tournaments before clinching the state title. They now rank eighth nationally in the Majors division and are set to compete in the Perfect Game World Series in East Cobb, Ga. TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 42

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.

• Full service interior design • Remodeling/new construction 713.419.4200 • wkinteriordesigns.com TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 43

KIDS

BRINGING HISTORY TO LIFE Miranda Gomez-Anzures, an eighth grader at St. Anne Catholic School, wrote the winning essay for the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution American History Essay Contest. The essay will go on to be judged at the state level this month.

by Miranda Gomez-Anzures, age 14

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A song for America

his school year, I participated in the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution American History Essay Contest. I won first place in my area and my essay will continue to the state-level competition. The topic was to write about John Philip Sousa, a famous conductor who composed The Stars and Stripes Forever, from the perspective of a news reporter. This song shows true American spirit. I wanted to show Sousa’s musical genius and tell people about the song.

This is an excerpt from my essay: It was May 14, 1897, and I had the privilege of listening to this new march in Philadelphia composed

by John Philip Sousa on behalf of the Philadelphia Times. On an expectant day in Philadelphia, John Phillip Sousa and his band, Sousa’s Band, first

played “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” The music began in an energetic and enchanting way. I could see in the faces of all the band members that they were very excited to be playing this new march. The crowd immediately became enamored with this march. The crowds of children and adults cheered and smiled. I, too, loved this march when I heard it.

The instruments were so different but created a perfect balance that joined together to make this march.

The musicians played effortlessly as if the music came naturally to them. Toward the end, there was a solo featuring the piccolo players, which added to the excitement of the crowd.

Many wonder how Sousa managed to write such a magnificent march that is beloved by Americans of all ages. He was once asked how he was inspired to write “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” In short, he

first answered that God had inspired him. Secondly, he stated that when he was traveling in Italy with his wife, he received news that his manager, David Blakely, had died. He wished to get home as soon as possible. On a boat back to the United States, he stated that in his mind a band was playing “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” After arriving in America, he wrote down the music for the march in 1896.

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.

Get Your Morning Buzz Every weekday morning, enjoy your coffee + the buzz in your inbox. Our e-newsletter, Morning Buzz, features buzzworthy stories about neighbors every day, Monday-Friday.

Sign up to find out what we’re buzzing about at thebuzzmagazines.com/morning-buzz.

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Leftover Wills In Texas, probate is not mandatory. Sometimes it’s not even necessary, thanks to Will substitutes like a trust, beneficiary designation, survivorship agreement, or affidavit of heirship.

If someone in your family died, and probate wasn’t necessary, congratulations, but someone else may need that Will later. A non-producing mineral interest turns into Eagle Ford Shale. A relative’s trust terminates, and the remainder is paid to Dad’s estate. Or the kids simply need to prove Mom took Dad’s share of the house before they can sell it.

Leftover Wills don’t belong at the house or the lawyer’s office. When a testator dies, treat the original Will like a hot potato. Don’t file it in a desk drawer, and don’t leave it in the safe deposit box. If it’s been less than four years since the testator died, run the Will past a lawyer to confirm that probate’s not necessary. If not, file the original Will with the county clerk.

Which one? The one with probate jurisdiction. That’s generally the county where the decedent lived. If the decedent had no Texas residence, someone will have to pull the venue statutes (Estates Code, Chapter 33) to sort out where the Will belongs.

Filing the Will is not optional. Texas requires the custodian of an original Will to file it as soon as they learn of the testator’s death. Estates Code, Section 252.201. Custodians who sit on Wills may be arrested and confined. There’s no exception for “I forgot,” “No one told me,” or “My client expected me to keep it.” Yes, this applies to lawyers who hold Wills, too. No one has a duty to deliver a copy of a Will unless ordered by the probate judge.

There’s a different procedure to deposit your own Will while you are still alive.

Parts of those rules apply after your death.

Section 252.201(b). Oddly, one requirement that survives death is that the testator (you), must sign the clerk’s envelope.

Section 252.002(b)(1). Since you are dead, and no longer capable of signing anything, common practice is for the clerk to require the custodian’s signature instead. A courier can sign, but an attempted deposit by U.S. mail will fail.

For most people, it’s safest to hand carry an original Will to the probate clerk downtown. The last known home address of the decedent, the executor (and alternates), and all the beneficiaries are required, so go prepared.

Mention Section 252.201(b) so the clerk doesn’t charge you. Once filed, the Will is indexed, and available to support a later probate application by you or someone else.

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

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Neighborhood Tails Reginald and Kingsley, age 3, English Cocker Spaniels Cheerio!

We are Reginald (the one with black ears) and Kingsley (the one with orange ears).

We are English cocker spaniels, so of course we need to have proper English names! We’re known for our loving and attentive personalities. If any of our family members are home, you can find us snuggled up next to them (not very English of us). Some might say we’re a bit spoiled; we’re allowed on every piece of furniture in the house.

We’re very lucky to have four sisters – we have a mom and a dad too, but we think our sisters are much cooler. We love being the only boys in the house. Our favorite thing to do is chasing each other and bugs in the backyard, then cooling off with a swim, followed by a sweet potato treat.

Delicious and nutritious! If you see us around, be sure and say hello – we love making new friends!

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.

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Communication for better care The healthcare system in the United States is broken, and navigating it can be overwhelming and confusing. There are specialists for every condition, each telling you something different... and none communicating with each other. As a patient, it is easy to receive mixed messages and feel unsure about the best course of action.

Mixed messages about care equals no real care.

This lack of clarity extends to home healthcare for loved ones, too. Providers often fail to offer clear diagnoses or instructions or respond to concerns. This can leave family members feeling stressed and unsupported. They go it alone because they feel they have no other choice.

Fortunately, there is another choice.

At Personal Caregiving Services, we understand the challenges of the healthcare system – and we have the experience and tools to navigate it for you. We draw on my 33-plus years in the healthcare industry to guide you and your loved ones through the process, help them live independently, or put the right people in the right places to provide the services they need. Perhaps most importantly, we prioritize communication, transparency, and family support to eliminate the confusion of the healthcare system and ensure the best possible home-care experience for your loved one – and for you.

S. Gerber & Associates, 3730 Kirby Dr., Suite 1200, Houston, TX 77098, 713.857.3227, sid@personalcaregiving.com

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Goldilocks and the Three Dust Mites Once upon a time, there was a young lady named Goldilocks. On one occasion, she entered (uninvited, of course) into a home of three dust mites.

Having skipped breakfast for just a protein bar, she was hungry. She sat down to their breakfast table to eat some unfinished porridge. She found the Papa dust mite’s porridge too hot and the Mama dust mite’s porridge too cold. But the Baby dust mite’s porridge was Just Right.

OK, you know where this story is going… But why is this allergist recounting this fairy tale?

It’s about allergy shots, of course! You see, there are three ways to build up the dose of allergy shots. We have to start shots at a low dose, since you’re allergic to the ragweed, oak trees, cats and, of course, dust mites. But you don’t really benefit from the shots until they are at a high enough dose to teach your immune system to stop having “false alarms” and having serious immunologic reactions to harmless substances.

The traditional approach is to build up the dose of the shots carefully.

This is Mama Bear. You go to the allergist’s office once or twice a week for several months, each time increasing the dose by a little bit.

In the 1990s and with the advent of managed care, with a separate copay for each “date of service,” RUSH became popular. This “Papa Bear” approach meant that the allergist would try to build up the dose as high as possible in one day. Sometimes, it works, but often, the patient goes into anaphylaxis. We have successfully done RUSH over 6,000 times since 1996, but we perform this procedure less often than we did 15 or 20 years ago.

Why is that? Baby Bear, of course!

When Papa Bear’s bed was too hard and Papa Bear’s porridge was too hot, but Mama Bear’s bed was too soft and porridge was too cold, Goldilocks found Baby Bear’s particulars just right.

In this vernacular, Baby Bear is an inbetween build up called cluster. With cluster, we perform about 10% of that RUSH procedure over about 90 minutes once or twice a week, for a total of about 12 visits, and make it all the way to the effective maintenance dose relatively quickly. It’s possible to start allergy shots and get to maintenance dose in six weeks if you cluster twice a week. Almost every insurance company, except Medicare and Humana, cover accelerated allergy shot build ups. If you haven’t had time to go on allergy shots or never achieved relief with previous lower dose attempts, we might be able to help.

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

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by Angie Frederickson, staff writer

Buzz About Town Walking the carpet at Sundance

Mark Nesler. For more information, call 713993-9544 or visit avondalehouse.org/newsroom.

An evening for Aishel House

John and Kelly Raley (pictured) enjoyed a day on the mountain in Park City, Utah, after a oncein-a-lifetime experience at the Sundance Film Festival. John, a practicing trial lawyer and mediator, has an on-screen role in Hit Man, a new movie produced and directed by Richard Linklater and starring Glen Powell. During a courtroom scene, John plays a lawyer who crossexamines a witness played by Powell. John and Kelly walked the carpet for press photos and sat with the film team during a discussion with Linklater and Powell that was moderated by the director of the Sundance Film Festival, Eugene Hernandez. The film is based on the 2001 Texas Monthly magazine article by Skip Hollandsworth about an undercover Houston police officer who posed as a hit man. Hit Man premiered at the Venice International Film Festival and is scheduled to be released by Netflix this summer.

Greek new year tradition Annunciation Orthodox School (AOS) first graders (pictured) participated in a Greek Orthodox new year tradition. Each year, AOS

students enjoy a slice of bread from a loaf known as vasilopita, a sweet egg bread accented with orange flavor. According to tradition, the loaf of bread represents good luck for the coming year for the person who finds a coin in their slice. Multiple loaves of vasilopita are baked by volunteer moms in the Parent Teacher Club and are delivered to each classroom at AOS. During religion class period, the students cut the bread with their classmates, teachers, and staff, all hoping to find the coveted coin.

Hear our voices Allen and Emily Capps (pictured, from left), along with Christian and Ashley Nelly (not pictured) are co-chairs for the Avondale House Embracing Autism, Hear our Voices fundraising event on Apr. 12 at River Oaks Country Club.

The third annual event benefits Avondale House, a nonprofit organization that provides a private school, adult day programming, longterm residential services, and employment opportunities for people with autism. Funds raised will support an expansion effort to meet the increasing demand for autism services.

Guests at the event will enjoy an evening with four of Nashville’s #1 hit singer-songwriters, Phillip White, Leslie Satcher, Jenn Schott, and

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Elisheva Golani

Andy and Ellen Taer, Rochel Lazaroff and Rabbi Lazer Lazaroff (pictured, from left) celebrated at the annual Aishel House gala. More than 250 supporters gathered at Aishel House, joined by another 250 supporters who participated via livestream, for the gala benefit dinner to honor the volunteers and physicians who dedicate their time to the organization’s mission

to provide transportation, kosher food, subsidized accommodations, and spiritual and emotional support to patients and families who are receiving treatment in the Texas Medical Center. Dr. Joseph Caselli received the Physician and Friend Award for his lifetime of medical accomplishments and dedication to his patients, and Ellen and Andy Taer were named Volunteers of the Year. During the award presentation, the Taers received an artistic depiction (pictured) of the Hebrew word “V’ahavta,” the first word in the biblical verse “and you shall love your fellow as yourself.”

Shop ’til you drop at The City Market The Houston Junior Forum (HJF) presents its third annual The City Market event at POST Houston on Apr. 5 and 6. (continued on page 50)

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men joined other former students, from the Class of 1994 to the Class of 2023, and visited the ROBS campus to have lunch with their former teachers, including many beloved retired teachers who returned to school for the event.

A day of service

(continued from page 48) Shoppers can usher in the

spring season at the curated market featuring a wide range of vendors. Grab your shopping pals and find unique clothing, home décor, gifts, and more while supporting charitable services for children, youth, women, and senior adults. The City Market raises funds for HJF’s College Scholarship and Community Grants Programs. Since 1965, the College Scholarship Program has awarded more than $2,000,000 in multi-year scholarships, and the Community Grants Program, initiated in 2010, has provided more than $1,000,000 to Houston-focused nonprofit organizations.

Pictured, from left, are HJF members Susan Rosenbaum, Linda West, Dale Kurtz, Karen Darnell, Debbie Berner, and Krista Parker. To learn more about The City Market and special preview events, visit thecitymkt.org.

Back to ROBS River Oaks Baptist School (ROBS) alumni Catherine Dick, Wes Kozar, Evie Laskaris, Jack Ritter, Mateo Leal, Joshua Hou, Elise Sanders, and Mabrey Stokes (pictured, from left) enjoyed a walk down memory lane at the alumni lunch. These current high school fresh-

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National Charity League (NCL) members Emma Bray, Charlotte Dillon, and Maddie Sabat (pictured, from left) were among the 300 mother-daughter members of the Texas Sage Chapter who facilitated a book drive benefiting Books Between Kids. Mothers and daughters came together on Martin Luther King Jr. Day to honor his legacy by participating in the book drive that collected more than 4,300 books for the local nonprofit organi- (continued on page 52)

“For all the things my hands have held, the best by far is you.” - Andrew McMahon Photographing treasured moments for over 25 years A Portrait Remembers

713.542.8040 nikky@lawellphoto.com www.lawellphoto.com

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(continued from page 50) zation. Texas Sage mem-

bers began collecting books from friends, family members, and neighbors in mid-December, and far surpassed their 1,000-book goal. During NCL’s third annual National Day of Service, groups of Texas Sage members gathered at individual homes to sort books and support this year’s focus on literacy efforts in the community.

Katie Lynn

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10 years of The Sale

the 10th anniversary of The Sale, and a recordbreaking 1,600 shoppers took over Bayou City Event Center searching for unique finds from more than 50 of Houston’s favorite boutiques and raised more than $400,000 for pediatric cancer research at the University of Texas MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital. The Sale kicked off with a champagne preview party for sponsors and underwriters, followed by two full days of shopping available to the public.

Michele Lipscomb, Susan McMillan, Elizabeth Galante, and Connie Wright (pictured, from left) served as event co-chairs for The Sale, a three-day shopping event presented by Houston Tri Delta Philanthropies, Inc. This year marks

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.

Daniel Ortiz

Yésely Love, Pat Sorrells, Caroline Walter, and Stephanie Magers (pictured, from left) enjoyed a festive evening at The Revaire benefiting Camp for All. The sold-out Under the Big Top gala welcomed nearly 600 guests and raised more than $1 million for barrier-free camp programming for children and adults with challenging illnesses or special needs. Co-chairs Love, Magers, and Walter, and mistress of ceremonies Ilona Carson, welcomed supporters to the event featuring a live auction, silent auction, wine pull, and inspiring personal stories from Camp for All campers. The evening honored Ginger Bertrand, her late mother Sybil Roos, and their families for their longtime support and dedication to Camp for All. Funds raised during the event will help provide camp opportunities for the 9,000 campers who attend Camp for All each year.

discover eight different places around the world, learning literacy, math, science, art, history, and language, all from the point of view of a far-away land. This year’s pre-kindergarteners recently traveled back in time to Ancient Egypt to learn about the pyramids and hieroglyphs, discover who dug up the tomb of King Tut, and even design their own sarcophagus.

Next stop: Egypt Presbyterian School pre-kindergartners Jesse Mackey, Rosie Freels, Finley Lopez, and Parker Ciolli (pictured, from left) hopped aboard Pre-K Airlines to visit Egypt (aka an immersive learning experience in the classroom). PK4 teacher Lindsay Renken developed the Pre-K Airlines curriculum 15 years ago to introduce young students to the culture of various countries around the world. Throughout the school year, students TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS BUZZ MARCH 2024 52

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by Andria Dilling, staff writer

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Oscars Month: Classic quotes and new movies

itting in a cold movie theater with a Diet Coke and a bag of popcorn used to be on my list of favorite places to be on Saturday nights (or summer afternoons or Tuesday evenings or…).

Then Covid happened, and for two years nobody even knew if the theaters were open.

Until this year.

Finally, 2023 brought a slew of box-offices openings promising the movie-theater experience we thought might have disappeared forever.

Not only that, but two of the major Oscar contenders – both nominated several times and both for Best Picture – opened on the same day in June, causing a meme-fest from fans debating whether a double-feature was in order and, if it was, which movie should be watched first. Oppenheimer and Barbie were dichotomies – one historical, gray, and pensive, about the creator of the atomic bomb, and the other pink and buzzy and light (at least on the surface). Still, movie buffs and internet chatter launched so many franken-names for the big opening day that there are long threads on discussion platforms spawning ideas: Barbenheimer?

Boppenheimer? Boopenheimer? Hoppenheimer?

Whoppenheimer? Also, there are the images: think pink-smoke nuclear explosions.

With March being Academy Awards month, there’s a new focus on all the films released this past year. (The Oscars will air on ABC Sunday, March 10, at 7 p.m., with Jimmy Kimmel hosting.) Contenders for Best Picture are: American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall, Barbie, The Holdovers, Killers of the Flower Moon, Maestro, Oppenheimer, Past Lives, Poor Things, and The Zone of Interest.

But as much as the critics are talking about these movies and all their social observations, will the films leave us with memorable quotes? Most of us, whether or not we’ve actually seen the movies, probably can’t answer that question today. But we asked readers to share some all-time favorite movie quotes, and here’s what they had to say….

Michael Holthouse: “Go ahead… make my day!”

Sudden Impact (1983) Wayne Kearney: “I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass. And I’m all out of bubblegum.”

They Live (1988)

Joy Yeager: “Okay. Everybody just pretend to be normal, okay?”

Little Miss Sunshine (2006) Allan Fradkin: “My mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”

Forrest Gump (1994) LIFE IMITATES ART Many of the quotes we use regularly are straight out of Charles Fletcher: the movies.

“We used to look up in the sky and wonder at A Few Good Men (1992) our place in the stars. Now we just look down “I would rather have 30 minutes of wonderful and worry about our place in the dirt.” than a lifetime of nothing special.”

Interstellar (2014) Steel Magnolias (1989) Paul Danziger: “It’s a funny thing about comin’ home. Looks “You f---ed up. You trusted us.” the same, smells the same, feels the same. Then Animal House (1978) you realize what’s changed is you.”

Nancy Beck: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) “Life is a banquet, and most poor suckers are Ryan Dilling: starving to death!”

“Good morning. And in case I don’t see ya, Auntie Mame (1958) good afternoon, good evening, and good night!”

Peta Rubenstein: The Truman Show (1998) “Big mistake. Big. Huge!”

Jennifer Block also has several favorites: Pretty Woman (1990) “Is it just me or does Do You Want to Build a Jacqueline Kenneally says they use this line Snowman from Frozen sound suspiciously like every day when saying goodbye to their boys: Papa Can You Hear Me? from Yentl? And nobody “Have fun storming the castle!” f---ing realizes it.”

The Princess Bride (1987) Deadpool 2 (2018) Bernie Milstein says he uses this quote to “I’m just one stomach flu away from my goal describe and answer questions, as in, “That’s a weight.”

Frankly Scarlett question.”

The Devil Wears Prada (2006) “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.”

“I’m not like a regular mom. I’m a cool mom.”

Gone with the Wind (1939) Mean Girls (2004) Wendy Gold: Donna Gershenwald says, “This movie was preYou know what the happiest animal on earth is? screened at Cornell, and I have a vivid memory of A goldfish. You know why? Got a 10-second memher saying that line. It has resonated ever since!” ory. Be a goldfish, Sam. “Well, it's official. I’ve become my mother.”

Television series “Ted Lasso” (2021) About Last Night (1986) Julia Humphreys has a few favorites: All these classic quotes have me thinking: It’s “I guess it comes down to a simple choice, time for some serious Academy Awards nomireally. Get busy living, or get busy dying.” nee movie-watching, ears open for some new The Shawshank Redemption (1994) favorite quotes. I’ll be getting the Diet Cokes “You can’t handle the truth!” and popcorn ready.

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