The UNCF Houston Black Tie Gala on Saturday, November 19, 2016 was a powerful, yet engaging event that spoke volume of leaders, alumni and community advocates gathering resources to preserve the legacy of historical black colleges and universities (HBCUs). The event commenced with elegant Emcees and ended with a powerful performance of one of our country’s most powerful artist, drummer and percussionist, Sheila Escovedo. Known to the world as Sheila E.
The evening started with a large group of beautiful people in their ‘Black-Tie Best’ networking, enjoying cocktails and adding their names to the evening’s raffle. The raffle consisted of top notch gifts, such as First Class tickets from United Airlines and Uber, excursions to a Cattle Ranch, Houston’s professional sports outings, an invite from Designer Cesar Galindo to Fashion Week 2017 and so much more.
Around 7pm, the doors opened to a beautiful set of tables, graced by amazing flowers, donated by the Kroger corporation and a set adorned with hues of purple. The tables were exquisite and fit for Kings and Queens, as they joined friends, colleagues and community members for dinner.
The evening opened up with Mayor Turner and his daughter Ashley, and followed by the first speaker of the night, CEO and President of the UNCF, Dr. Michael Lomax. He spoke about the HBCU teams competing in STEM events in Silicon Valley and the importance of supporting a ‘diverse’ HBCU family. The stand out teams were combined with both African American and Hispanic college students. Dr. Lomax spoke of the strength of academics that still holds strong with HBCUs across the county and in central Texas.
There were a number of awards given out during the evening. Two of the most notable awards were given to Pamela Ellis and Dr. Rod Paige. Pamela Ellis, Chief Executive Officer for Smahrt Solutions and Founder of the Smahrt Girl Foundation received the John and Drucie Chase Young Builders Honoree Award. Dr. Rod Paige, the First Black African American U.S. Secretary of Education received the Excellence in Education Award.
The evening concluded with the amazing musical talents of Shelia E and her fabulous background performers and musicians. The guests joined her around the stage and at one point, they joined her on the stage for an upbeat dance number. I enjoyed the evening at the stage side with Houston’s area UNCF Director, Juana Collins. What an amazing conclusion to a wonderful night of philanthropy for our communities and for our children, the next U.S. leaders.
As we approach a new season of Senior students applying for college, it would be so great to see the diverse applications increase, while opening up the doors to a wider and new generation of our future leaders. In today’s political climate, it is a good thing to see our children modeling our current leaders, by inviting and engaging in wider demographics. Our future Business executives, mathematicians, teachers and entrepreneurs deserve to live in peace and harmony.
It was so heartwarming to hear that HBCU schools are displaying combined diverse teams in major STEM competitions. Our next generation deserves to learn from each other and to build future business together. We are ALL designed to serve and grow together.
For annual contributions to the Houston, Texas area office that supports thousands of students from South Texas and the New Mexico areas, contact UNCF Houston at 713.942.8623 care of Ms. Juana.Collins@uncf.org
“A mind is a terrible thing to waste, but a wonderful thing to invest in.” – UNCF.org
For future UNCF Fundraisers, visit uncf.org
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A special thank you to Mr. Lawrence D. Whitman of Whitman & Associates for accommodating ReelUrbanNews.com on site for the evening. Mr. Whitman arranged the talent for the evening’s performance.
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