Houston Lifestyles and Homes magazine Apr 2009: Houston Events, Homes, Info, News, Health and Well-Being, Decorating, Home Improvement

Downtown Rodeo Parade Energizes
Houston With Go Texan Spirit

Led by Grand Marshal Ed Emmett, Harris County Judge, the Downtown Rodeo Parade wound through Houston surrounded by Rodeo fans of all ages. The Downtown Rodeo Parade has been a tradition since 1938. The streets were full with 14 colorful floats, 12 trail rides with thousands of horses and riders, 12 wagons, eight marching bands and hundreds of thousands of smiling faces. The 2009 Downtown Rodeo Parade winners were: float awards: sweepstakes – Fiesta; theme – Supermercados Teloloapan; originality – Goya Foods; most beautiful – Strawberry Festival; and chairman’s – La Michuacana; president’s – Texas Steel Fabricators.

Trail Ride awards went to: top trail ride – Southwestern; best appearing group – Valley Lodge Trail Ride Wagon 4; and best show wagon – Mission Trail Ride Wagon 3.

Also making their way through downtown were more than 10,000 participants, including a 2004 Olympian, taking part in the 22nd annual ConocoPhillips Rodeo Run, a 10K competitive run and 5K fun run.

All race entry fees are donated to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Educational Fund to support student scholarships and educational programs. With this year ’s contribution of $245,000, ConocoPhillips has donated more than $2.2 million to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Educational Fund since 1988.

The top race finishers in the 10K race were: overall male – Ryan Sheehan, Rochester Hills, Mich., 30.10; overall female – Elva Dryer, Gunnison, Colo., 35.09; masters male – Wilmer J. Bustillos, Houston, 34.06; masters female – Peggy Yetman, Beaumont, Texas, 36.04; and wheelchair male – Ramiro Bermudez, Houston, 28.06.

Top finishers in the 5K fun run were: overall male – Keith Edmond, Channelview, Texas; overall woman – Maria Pruessner, Kingwood, Texas and wheelchair winner – Kevin Saunders, Houston.

Houston SPCA Announces Earth Friendly Program to Save Lives

The Houston SPCA has gone green by renovating the barn to help the farm animals and the earth. Now, they are going one step further by inviting the public to join them as they recycle old papers to raise money to help the thousands of homeless and abused animals they care for every year. Thanks to www.PaperRetriever.com, the SPCA has set up a large green and yellow recycling bin in the parking lot in front of the affiliate, the Wildlife Rehab and Education Center located just off of Old Katy Road.

PaperRetriever.com is a community-based recycling program designed for schools, nonprofit organizations and places of worship to help raise money. The bin will be accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Each time a person drops off old newspapers, magazines, shopping catalogs, junk mail, school papers, office papers, envelopes and phone books into the bin, the Houston SPCA will receive $5 dollars for every ton of paper. The money received from the recycled paper will then go back to the shelter to help the animals in need.

Houston Komen Affiliate

Ranks No. 1 Among Peers

The Houston affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure provided the most funds for cancer research and education in 2008-09 of all 125 affiliate groups worldwide.

The Houston affiliate awarded grants totaling $3.4 million for education, screening and treatment. In its 19-year history, the affiliate has granted $5.2 million for national research and $15.8 million to local organizations. Serving Harris, Fort Bend, Chambers, Montgomery, Brazoria, Liberty and Galveston counties, the Houston affiliate ’s grant award process provides impartial allocation of funds to qualified nonprofit organizations helping countless breast cancer survivors and their families get the treatment and support they need.

The Komen Houston Race for the Cure, the affiliate’s largest fundraiser each year, drew a record 30,000 participants in October 2008. For more information about the 2009 Komen Houston Race for the Cure, go to www.komen-houston.org.

Houston Grand Opera Announces Winners

of Eleanor McCollum Competition For Young Singers

Winners of the Houston Grand Opera’s annual Concert of Arias, the final round of the Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers, were announced in February.

Ten finalists for the competition were selected from a group of 18 semi-finalists who came to Houston for a week of auditions, interviews and coaching. This year, the Eleanor McCollum Competition received more than 500 applications from young singers from around the world.

The 2009 winners were: first place — Soprano Rachel Willis-Sorensen, a graduate student at Brigham Young University School of Music; second place — Mezzo soprano Catherine Martin, a San Antonio native who is a candidate for a master ’s degree from the University Of Cincinnati College, Conservatory of Music; third place — Baritone Michael Sumuel, a graduate student at Rice University.

All proceeds from the annual event benefit the Eleanor McCollum Competitions for Young Singers and HGO Studio ’s outreach efforts to identify, attract and nurture the best vocal talent in the U.S.

Commuter Bus Service to Texas Medical Center to Stop

At the request of the Texas Medical Center, Fort Bend County ceased its commuter bus service route traveling to the Texas Medical Center campus effective March 6.

County Judge Bob Hebert stated, “We knew going in that this was a test-bed project for the Texas Medical Center and I'm sorry the numbers didn't work as well as they had hoped. We ’ll keep working with them to find a formula that can provide a positive cost-benefit for them so hopefully we can reinitiate this valuable service in the near future. ”

Fort Bend County is continuing the operation of the TREK Express service from Sugar Land to Greenway Plaza. Interested riders can transfer to Houston Metro's West Bellfort Park and Ride located at 11415 Roark Road, at West Bellfort, with a final destination of the Texas Medical Center. The TREK Express Greenway route serves both the University of Houston Sugar Land and First Colony AMC Theatre parking lots.

Cost for the TREK service from Sugar Land to the West Bellfort lot is $1 per person each way. Passengers with Fort Bend Express tickets can seek a refund for unused tickets from the Texas Medical Center through May 8. After May 8, no tickets will be refunded. To request a refund, contact the Customer Relations Department with The Texas Medical Center at
713-791-6161.

Ashford Lakes Forms Neighborhood Watch

Residents of Ashford Lakes subdivision worked with Sugar Land police to create a Neighborhood Watch Program, the first in many years formed north of U.S. Highway 90A.

Neighborhood Watch is a community policing partnership program that depends on citizen involvement to prevent and discourage crime and reduce fear by taking certain home, property and personal self-protection precautions.

Residents who are interested in starting new programs should enlist the support of half the neighbors on their block. A crime prevention officer will then meet with neighbors to discuss details of the program. To learn more, contact the Sugar Land Police Department ’s Crime Prevention Division at 281-275-2500.

Gallery Furniture Opens New Location

After 28 years in one location, Gallery Furniture, the nation’s largest furniture retailer by square foot, opened its second location on March 12 at Post Oak and Westheimer.

Gallery Furniture owners Jim and Linda McIngvale hired nationally-recognized designer Bill Stubbs, a Houston-based designer and host of the PBS series Moment of Luxury, to design the Galleria-area showroom.

Bill Stubbs is one of Architectural Digest’s Top 100 Architects and Designers. His projects have taken him around the world and include the interior design of a $100 million private jet. Bill believes that luxury should nurture and serve. His vision is that luxury can be experienced by everyone no matter how lavish or modest their budget. A visit to the new Gallery Furniture Post Oak will provide a moment of luxury for the eye and boundless ideas for homeowners to nurture themselves by adorning their homes with luxury items now available at Gallery Furniture Post Oak.

“Bill Stubbs is an expert on design and luxury and we are pleased to have his influence on the latest expansion to Gallery Furniture, ” said McIngvale.

The new store features approximately 15,000 square feet of home furnishings, including the exclusive Kreiss line and the popular TempurPedic sleep system, as well as an extensive selection of rugs and accessories. A second 7,500-square-foot phase of the store will be added later in 2009.

Gallery Furniture has had only one main location since its inception, the now famous address of 6006 I-45 North between Tidwell and Parker, but after the success of his Highland Village Kreiss store, owner Jim McIngvale began to look for a nearby location that had enough space and parking to accommodate his expansive inventory and also be convenient for customers.

El Dorado Renovation

As construction begins on the Quail Valley golf property with the renovation of the El Dorado course, the city of Missouri City is working to ensure the impact to the environment is minimized while the course is being renovated to the safest standards.

About 100 to 150 of approximately 4,000 trees on the overall project will be removed to make the golf course greens safer for play. The city will be replanting new trees on the El Dorado course by late 2009, after construction is complete.

“Other trees must be cleared away because as they have matured, their shade has impeded the growth of the bermuda grass along the course, ” said golf course architect Jeffrey Blume. “Some trees will be removed because they are adjacent to the golf cart path, which must be demolished and replaced to facilitate safe and efficient drainage on the property. ”

“Any time we have a major construction project, there are some initial disruptions, but every effort is made to follow up with a beautification solution to enhance the final appearance of the property, ” said Scott Elmer, the city’s director of public works. “As we work swiftly these next six months, it will become clear that the renovated El Dorado is a world-class golf property every resident can be proud of.”

Stormwater Tips To Keep Waterways Clean

The city of Missouri City wants residents to be aware of what’s washing down their storm drains, and eventually into their drinking water.

The city, in partnership with 15 Municipal Utility Districts, facilitates a Stormwater Management Program to minimize the pollution that enters the city ’s water system through storm drains.

For details on the Stormwater Management Program or to report dumping into storm drains, contact Jing Chen at 281-403-8500. To volunteer with the program, contact Claudia Notestine at 281-403-8500. For more information,go to www.missouricitytx.gov, and click on the “Stormwater Management” link under “For Your Information.”