Houston Style Magazine Vol 33 No 32

Houston Style Magazine Magazine AUGUST 04, 2022 – AUGUST 10, 2022

Volume 33 | Number 32

Houston’s Premiere Weekly Publication, Since 1989

H HCDE 2022-23 Calendar Is Downloadable For 25 Harris County School Districts H

Complimentary

A Celebration Of Club Music . . .

RENAISSANCE

Jesse Jackson

Blli Russell Was A Champion And Hero

Words By Jo-Carolyn Goode For Stylemagazine.com

Steven Williams

Houston Health Receives CDC Excellence Designation

H Gun Buyback A Success H ART: The Ensemble Theatre TAG US: #TeamStyleMag

Twitter: @HoustonStyle

McConnell Jones Celebrates 35th Year In Biz

Instagram: @StyleMagazineHTX

👀 Hous ton Gun BuyBack – A Suc c e s s

Facebook: @HoustonStyleMagazine

John Wood

TEXT: Calls For DHS' – Joseph Cuffari To Step Aside

Complete Comm. University: Emerging Leaders Apply Haute Shots: Teneshia Hudspeth

N E W S | C O M M E N TA R I E S | S P O R T S | H E A LT H | E N T E R TA I N M E N T Support Black Owned Businesses

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August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

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Secret Service 'Missing Text' CoverUp

Publisher Francis Page, Jr. fpagejr@stylemagazine.com

Top Lawmakers Renew Call For DHS IG – Joseph Cuffari To Step Aside From USS Investigation Words By Whitney Wild, Prscilla Alvarez for CNN Special to StyleMagazine.com

Associate Publisher Lisa Valadez lisa@stylemagazine.com Managing Editor Jo-Carolyn Goode editorial@stylemagazine.com Social Media Editor/Videographer Reginald Dominique reggiedominique@me.com Sports Editor Brian Barefield

brian_barefield@yahoo.com Food Writer Alex Jack

alexandriajack1991@gmail.com NATIONAL WRITERS

Jesse Jackson jjackson@rainbowpush.org Roland Martin www.rolandmartin.com Judge Greg Mathis www.askjudgemathis.com

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Vicky Pink vhpink@gmail.com William Ealy Williamealy1906@gmail.com Mike Munoz artrepreneur91@gmail.com Robert Franklin editorial@stylemagazine.com

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K

ey House Democrats have issued a new call for the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general to recuse himself from a probe of missing Secret Service text messages after a CNN exclusive report showed investigators knew for more than a year texts had been erased.

House Oversight Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney and House Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson reiterated their call for Inspector General Joseph Cuffari to step aside in a letter on Monday, citing concerns about “your lack of transparency and independence, which appear to be jeopardizing the integrity of a crucial investigation run by your office.”

Maloney and Thompson also are demanding transcribed interviews with key DHS IG staffers. CNN first reported that DHS inspector general investigators dropped efforts to recover missing Secret Service text messages in July 2021, a year before Cuffari raised concerns about Secret Service and DHS transparency to congressional oversight committees.

“The Committees have ob-

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tained new evidence that your office may have secretly abandoned efforts to collect text messages from the Secret Service more than a year ago,” the letter said. “These documents also indicate that your office may have taken steps to cover up the extent of missing records, raising further concerns about your ability to independently and effectively perform your duties as Inspector General (IG).”

The committees are requesting a slate of communications and documents by Monday, ranging from correspondence related to any decisions not to collect or recover text messages to communications related to notifying Congress.

Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, on Monday reiterated his call for the Justice Department to investigate the missing text messages.

“This is about the destruction of critical evidence, whether it’s material to the January 6 episode or not.

The fact that this man, Joseph Cuffari, as inspector general, could not get the information that should have been transferred from administration to the other and didn’t report it properly to Congress or to the agency that he’s working at, we may have jeopardized some very critical evidence when it comes to the historic record on January 6 and he treated it as almost a routine event rather than something that should have been highlighted,” Durbin told CNN’s Don Lemon.

WATCHDOG DEFENDS HIMSELF

However, in an internal email to employees obtained by the Project on Government Oversight and shared with CNN, Cuffari defended himself and commended them for their work amid an “onslaught of meritless criticism.”

“In the past couple of weeks, DHS OIG has been the subject of a tremendous amount of public speculation,” Cuffari told staff in an email obtained by the Project on Government Oversight and shared with CNN.

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“Because of US Attorney General guidelines and quality standards, we cannot always publicly respond to untruths and false information about our work,” he wrote. “I am so proud of the resilience I have witnessed in the face of this onslaught of meritless criticism.”

The email, sent at 2:28 p.m.

Monday, arrived shortly before key House Democrats accused Cuffari’s office of manipulating and omitting information about its investigation into missing Secret Service and top DHS officials’ text messages.

The letter shows a DHS deputy inspector general, Thomas Kait, wrote an email to a DHS senior liaison, Jim Crumpacker, on July 27, 2021, advising DHS investigators were no longer seeking text messages. Kait is one of the staffers the committee wants to interview now.

“Jim, please use this email as a reference to our conversation where I said we no longer request phone records and text messages from the USSS [United States Secret Service] relating to the events on January 6th,” the email said, according to the letter.

The letter also confirms CNN reporting that the probe into text messages was reopened in December 2021.

Lawmakers said in Monday’s letter that Kait also removed “key language” from a February memo to DHS underscoring the significance of text messages to the inspector general’s investigation. The original memo mentioned that most DHS components had not provided requested information and noted text message content is a “critical source of information for the DHS OIG review,” but the final version stated the opposite, saying that they had received responses, according to the letter.

www.StyleMagazine.com www.SecretService.gov www.CNN.com

August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

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COMMENTARY

BILL RUSSELL WAS A CHAMPION AND A AMERICAN HERO

By Jesse Jackson, National Political Writer

W

hen Bill Russell passed away this weekend at the age of 88, America lost not only a champion but a hero, a star who lit the way for others to follow.

Bill Russell supported Muhammad Ali when he resisted the draft on religious grounds. He stood with me as we opened PUSH in Chicago in 1971.

Russell followed in the footsteps of baseball’s Jackie Robinson, whom he admired and emulated.

Russell was, without a doubt, not just one of the greatest basketball players of all time, but surely the greatest champion of team sports generally. He transformed the game of basketball as much with his intelligence as with his phenomenal athletic skills. Although a California high school star in Oakland, California, he received only one college offer – from the University of San Francisco, a small Jesuit school. He proceeded to lead them to a stunning 55 straight victories and two national championships. He then helped the U.S. team win an Olympic gold medal in the 1956 Olympic Games.

Drafted by the St. Louis Hawks, he was traded immediately to the Boston Celtics. In a 13-year career, he led the Celtics to 11 national championships, and was named an NBA All-Star 12 times, and Most Valuable Player five times. He succeeded the legendary Red Auerbach as the Celtics coach, becoming the first Black coach of an American professional athletic team. He silenced the legions of doubters by winning two NBA titles as a player-coach.

Russell excelled not in individual statistics but in making his team better.

He made defense – blocked shots, steals, defensive rebounds – his forte, his outlet passes triggering the Celtics lethal fast break. Boston unveiled a statue of Rus-

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Member of the Boston Celtics; 1966 Championship team Bill Russell is honored at halftime of a game between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat at TD Garden on April 13, 2016, in Boston.

(Mike Lawrie/Getty Images/TNS) sell in its City Hall Plaza in 2013 (Russell agreed to allow it only in exchange for an official pledge to fund a program to mentor youth). The inscription is testament to his philosophy: “The most important measure of how good a game I’d played was how much better I’d made my teammates play.” Russell averaged a stunning 22 rebounds a game over the course of his career, but individual statistics didn’t impress him. “I determined early in my career,” he said, “the most important statistic in basketball is the final score.”

That understanding of what is important made him not simply a champion but a hero. People raise champions on their shoulders. A hero raises people on his or her shoulders. Russell was a leader, using his stature to lift others, even at great risk to himself.

He was born in Monroe, Louisiana, in 1934 into the violence of the apartheid South (between 1888 and

August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

51

1936 there were 4,673 lynchings in the South — 389 in Louisiana, 10 in the years around Russell’s birth from 1933 to 1935). When he was 9, his family moved to Oakland, California, where he grew up living in public housing. He led the Celtics in an era when Boston was torn apart by racial hatred.

The fans that cheered Russell on the basketball court didn’t want him to live in their neighborhood. In the 1960s, vandals broke into his house in the Boston suburbs, scrawling venom on the wall, leaving feces in his bed.

Russell once called Boston a “flea market of racism,” but he was not intimidated.

As a young star in 1958, he challenged the NBA for using a quota system to limit the number of Black players on each team. He marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr to protest segregation and joined him for the famous 1963 March on Washington. When Medgar Evers

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was assassinated in Jackson, Mississippi, Russell agreed to run a youth basketball camp in the city, bringing white and Black children together. Ignoring death threats, he went through with the plan.

When a restaurant in the South refused to serve the Black players on the Celtics, Russell refused to play in the game.

As NBA Commissioner Adam Silver summarized in a statement: “At the height of his athletic career, Bill advocated vigorously for civil rights and social justice, a legacy he passed down to generations of NBA players who followed in his footsteps.

Through the taunts, threats and unthinkable adversity, Bill rose above it all and remained true to his belief that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity.”

Russell was a favorite of those who played with and against him. He was known for his biting wit and famed for his iconic laugh – a high-pitched cackle that could lift a room. When the greatest big men of basketball – Shaquille O’Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, David Robinson, Alonzo Mourning – gathered to honor him, he pointed his finger at each one, and, in a stage whisper, told them “I would kick your a___.” The room exploded in laughter and joy, for a man who led on and off the court, a champion and a hero. He will be missed.

When champions win, people put them on their shoulders.

Bill was a hero, people rode his shoulders. He used his voice on and off the court. He is an example for athletes of this generation of the strengths they can have on and off the court.

You can write to the Rev. Jesse Jackson in care of this newspaper or by email at: jjackson@rainbowpush.org

NATIONAL: Jan. 6 Rioter Who Carried Gun To US Capital and Threatens Speaker Pelosi, Gets 7-years In Prison

By Hannah Rabinowitz for CNN.com for StyleMagazine.com • Sketch By Guy Reffitt

F

ederal judge on Monday sentenced Guy Reffitt, who brought a gun to the US Capitol during the January 6, 2021, riot and threatened House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, to more than seven years in prison, the longest insurrection-related sentence to date.

Reffitt, a recruiter for a rightwing militia known as the Three Percenters, was the first Capitol rioter to go to trial rather than take a plea agreement.

“Mr. Reffitt’s reluctance to admit early that his behavior is illegal is concerning,” District Judge Dabney Friedrich said before handing down the 87-month sentence. “And I want to be very clear ... under no legitimate definition of the term ‘patriot’ (does) Mr. Reffitt’s behavior on and around January 6 fit the term. It is the antithesis of the word.”

Friedrich added: “The officers at the Capitol are the patriots, as well as those who fought and even died to protect our democracy, our rule of law ... those in the mob are not. Not only are they not patriots, they’re a direct threat to our democracy and will be punished as such.”

Reffitt was convicted by a DC jury in March of five felonies, including transporting and carrying a firearm on Capitol grounds, interfering with Capitol Police and obstructing an official

proceeding. He had driven to DC with several firearms, one of which he carried with him on the steps of the Capitol during the early hours of the riot.

“I just want to see Pelosi’s head hit every f**king stair on the way out. ... And (Republican leader) Mitch McConnell too,” Reffitt said, according to a video recording he made of himself on January 6.

The hefty sentence, paired with the fact that every January 6 defendant to face a jury has been convicted, could deter some of the hundreds of January 6 defendants awaiting trial to instead take plea deals offered by the Justice Department.

The 87-month sentence is two years longer than any other Capitol riot prison term handed down so far.

Reffitt was adamant in earlier hearings about being the first January

6 defendant to take his case to trial.

But on Monday, in plea for leniency in advance of his sentencing, he said that he was a “f***ing idiot” who was parroting “founding fathers and stupid sh*t like that” around January 6, and that he doubled down on that rhetoric to “garner money” for his family during the course of his legal battle.

“It seems like you wanted to be the big guy, the important guy, the first guy to go to trial ... the first guy up there, to revel in the press,” Friedrich said to Reffitt. “You want to be an important person who makes a difference, and yet you are going about it in all the wrong ways.”

“My point exactly, your honor” Reffitt said.

Reffitt’s wife and two daughters were in the courtroom when the sentence was handed down. Reffitt’s

younger daughter, Peyton, told the judge that her father is “not a threat to my family,” and that her family “turned a blind eye” to his mental health issues.

“My father’s name wasn’t on all the flags that were there that day, that everyone was carrying that day. He is not the leader,” Peyton said through tears, at times pausing with her hand on her heart.

The mother of Ashli Babbitt, the pro-Trump rioter who was shot and killed by police on January 6, also was in the courtroom at times on Monday.

Reffitt’s son Jackson, who testified against his father during the trial, was not in the courtroom. In a statement read aloud by prosecutors, Jackson said that his father “slowly lost himself over the last five years,” but that “whether you view him as a father, a family member or friend, using these labels to justify anything he has done is completely wrong.”

“We do believe he is a domestic terrorist,” Nestler said Monday.

Friedrich did not add additional penalties for terrorism, however, saying that it would create an “unwarranted disparity” between Reffitt’s sentence and that of other rioters convicted of bringing weapons or threatening lawmakers.

This story has been updated with additional details.

I Got This!

COVID is unpredictable. I need to protect myself, my family, friends, and my community. So, I got my booster for extra protection against COVID’s worst outcomes and for powerful peace of mind.

Find COVID boosters near you at vaccines.gov

Paid for by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

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August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

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CITY: Complete Communities University Leadership Training Promotes Civic Engagement

Houston Health Department Receives CDC Center Of Emerging Leaders Invited To Apply For Fall 2022 Courses - Link Below Excellence Designation

By StyleMagazine.com – Newswire

Health Director – Steven Williams Shannon Buggs – (Founding) Director

T

Anthony O'Neail Davis – Fred Navarre – Deputy Assist. Dir. Internal Deputy Assist. Dir. External

Angie Ramirez – Admin. Specialist

Derrius Washington – Program Manager

ccu.html.

Applicants must be residents of Houston. Applications must be received by 5 p.m., August 31, 2022.

The CCU program is administered by DON’s Office of Neighborhood Engagement.

For more information, call For application guidelines 832-393-1061 or email Paul. and to apply, go to: www.housGreen@houstontx.gov. tontx.gov/neighborhoods/

he Department of Neighborhoods (DON) invites Houston residents committed to making a positive impact in their communities to apply for Fall 2022 Complete Communities University (CCU) leadership training.

The 8-week course will run September 21 – November 9. The classes will be held online via Microsoft Teams and in person on Wednesday evenings, 6-8:30 p.m. The application deadline is August 31, 2022.

The CCU program educates emerging leaders on how to effectively engage residents in civic activities to vitalize and empower neighborhoods.

Course topics include leadership development through civic engagement, volunteerism, voter education, how city and county governments function and impact neighborhoods, and how to effectively navigate City services and

local resources. Course participants are challenged to devise civic engagement strategies based on the unique character, interests and needs of their neighborhoods.

CCU classes are conducted by DON staff with extensive experience in civic engagement and knowledge of Houston communities. The classes include presentations by subject experts from City departments and community organizations.

M

BUSINESS: McConnell Jones – Celebrates 35th Year

any things have changed in the past 35 years. Smartphones, Zoom meetings, and streaming television have traversed from fantasy to essentials in our daily lives. When Wayne McConnell sat down at his kitchen table in the Summer of 1987 to create an accounting firm, he could not fathom the world—or the firm—today.

But Wayne knew that the firm would be built upon strong personal relationships, a commitment to serving the community, fostering an environment where people of all backgrounds could strive for personal and professional development and find and fulfill their true purpose for being.

McConnell Jones is proud to still embody these values on this anniversary.

As we’ve grown from that kitchen table and adapted to a new world, McConnell Jones remains committed to providing the highest quality services with the most diverse teams possible.

Our investments in technology, people, and processes are best in

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his week, Mayor Sylvester Turner, the Houston Health Department’s Stephen Williams, director, and Dr. Loren Hopkins, PhD, chief environmental science officer, Houston Public Works, and Rice University announced some good news for hard work during COVID. The Houston Health Department (HHD) has received a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) designation as a national Center of Excellence for wastewater epidemiology. During the COVID-19 pandemic, HHD, in partnership with Rice University, established itself as a leader in wastewater epidemiology.

The center will allow a continued collaboration between the department and Rice University. The department will lead the CDC grant with a sub-award given to Rice University.

The award will assist the department in sharing its expertise with cities across the nation and supporting public health. It also places the department center stage as the CDC develops standardized methods for this new public health tool.

www.HoustonHealth.org

Company Business Principals Founded On Diverse Thinking – Unique Perspective

By StyleMagazine.com – Newswire

TEAM – McConnell Jones class, allowing our professionals to serve some of the largest companies

August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

in the country, from anywhere in the US. Those foundations are enhanced

by an environment in which people not just create a career, but version of themselves that is more self-aware.

Unique programs such as our mindfulness sessions, the firm book club, our multi-cultural Thanksgiving lunch, and coaching/mentoring programs are all ingredients of our “secret sauce.”

And like a vintage wine, its tasting pretty good after all this time.

Our founding partners, Wayne McConnell, Thomas Jones, Odysseus Lanier, and Sharon Murphy are proud of our recognition as a top ten firm in Houston; as one of the top three largest African American owned firms in the country; as one of the fastest growing CPA firms in the country; and Wayne’s being named a top ten managing partner

by Accounting Today.

As we celebrate our 35th anniversary this month, we want to thank our team members, past and present for their contributions to MJ; and our clients, many of whom have been with the firm for decades, for their loyalty and support.

www.McConnellJones.com

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STATE: Proposed TDP Rules Amendment: CITY: HCDE Releases 2022-23 Calendar Make Precinct Chairs Automatic State For 25 Harris County School Districts Convention Delegates starting In 2024 HARRIS COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS 2022-2023 CALENDARS

By StyleMagazine.com – Newswire

By StyleMagazine.com – Newswire

Compiled by Harris County Department of Education

DISTRICT

CLASSES BEGIN

Aldine

Aug. 17

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 22 - Jan. 4

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/17, 11/8, 1/16, 2/20, 5/29

Alief

Aug. 8

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Jan. 2

March 13-17

April 7-10

9/5, 10/12 - 10/14, 11/8, 1/16, 2/20

May 25

Channelview

Aug. 15

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/7, 1/16, 2/17, 5/29

May 26

OTHER HOLIDAYS

June 1

March 13-17

April 7

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 22 - Jan. 4

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 1/16, 5/29

May 25

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 1/16, 5/29

May 25

April 7-10

9/5, 10/19, 1/16, 2/17 - 2/20, 5/19, 5/29

March 13-17

9/5, 1/16, 5/29

CLASSES END

Aug. 11

May 25

Dayton

Aug. 11

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

Deer Park

Aug. 17

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7-10

9/5, 2/20, 5/29

May 25

Galena Park

Aug. 11

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 23 - Jan. 6

March 13-17

April 7-10

9/5, 10/14 - 10/17, 1/16, 2/20, 5/29

May 25

Goose Creek

Aug. 10

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Jan. 2

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/12 - 10/14, 1/16, 5/29

May 24

May 24

Houston

Aug. 22

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 22 - Jan. 4

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/5, 1/16, 3/31, 4/21, 5/29

May 31

Huffman

Aug. 10

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 22 - Jan. 3

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/3 - 10/7, 1/16, 2/9 - 2/13, 5/29

May 26

Aug. 9

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Jan. 2

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 1/16, 5/29

May 26

Katy

Aug. 17

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Jan. 2

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/10, 1/16, 5/29

May 25

Klein

Aug. 10

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/10 - 10/14, 1/16, 2/15 - 2/17, 5/29

May 26

La Porte

Aug. 17

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Jan. 3

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/7 - 10/10, 11/8, 1/16, 2/16 - 2/20

May 25

April 7

9/5, 10/10 - 10/14, 1/16, 2/20 - 2/24, 5/29

Pasadena

Aug. 16

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 1/16, 5/29

May 24

Pearland

Aug. 17

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7-10

9/5, 1/16, 5/29

May 25

Aug. 8

Aug. 17

Nov. 18-25

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

April 10 - 14

May 25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 1/16, 5/29

Spring

Aug. 16

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Jan. 2

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/10, 11/8, 1/16, 2/20, 5/29

June 1

Spring Branch

Aug. 15

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 10/10, 11/8, 1/16, 5/29

May 25

Stafford

Aug. 10

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Jan. 3

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 9/23, 1/16, 2/20, 5/29

June 2

Sheldon

N

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

EASTER

Aug. 22

New Caney

their precinct is correct and complete and registering new voters, in their precincts, to engaging in regular voter engagement and education and leading get out the vote (GOTV) efforts in their precincts.

So, you are aware, there are other people who are already automatic delegates. I am just trying to add Precinct Chairs to that group because we need Precinct Chairs to know how important they are to our party winning elections.

Hopefully, an automatic delegate position to the State Party Convention will encourage more people to want to serve as Precinct Chairs. www.Texas Democrates.org

SPRING BREAK

Crosby

Humble

ext week, when we meet in Dallas for this year’s Texas Democratic Party Convention, I will be circulating a petition to collect signatures to amend the State Party rules to make Precinct Chairs automatic delegates to State Party Conventions beginning in 2024.

Below, in bold, is the proposed new rule. I have worked with the State Party staff to come up with the language for the amendment and want to thank Marco Orrantia for his assistance in getting this language together.

I am making this effort because I believe we need to thank Precinct Chairs for all the work we need them to do from making sure the VAN data for

Nov. 21-25

WINTER BREAK

Cy-Fair

Clear Creek

Aug. 17

THANKSGIVING

May 25

Tomball

Aug. 16

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 19 - Dec. 30

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 1/16, 2/20, 5/29

May 25

Waller

Aug. 22

Nov. 21-25

Dec. 22 - Jan. 4

March 13-17

April 7

9/5, 1/16, 5/29

May 25

Harris County Department of Education provides the compilation of district calendars as a public service. We are not responsible for changes in district calendars. Please consult your local school district for additional details concerning holidays/staff work days, etc.

Harris County Department of Education is a unique, educational entity that serves school districts, government agencies, nonprofits, and the public in the third-largest county in the U.S. Annually, HCDE serves a quarter-million students and educators through schools for students with profound special needs; the oldest adult education program in Texas; Head Start early childhood education; school-based therapy services; and afterschool programs. HCDE also offers educators professional development and certification, school safety training, records management, and a purchasing cooperative.

K

ey dates for the 2022-2023 school year for each of the 25 school districts in Harris County are available on the Harris County Department of Education (HCDE) comprehensive school district calendar.

HCDE compiles the calendar each year, which includes the school year’s holidays and beginning and end dates for multiple districts.

Thanksgiving break will be observed Nov. 21-25 by all districts.

Winter break begins as early as Dec. 19 in some districts and ends as late as

hcde - texas.org

Jan. 6 for others. Most districts return to school on Jan. 2.

All districts will observe spring break March 13-17, except New Caney Independent School District, which will observe spring break April 10-14.

Staff workdays and other holidays differ. Districts will wrap up the school year between May 24 and June 2.

Each district’s complete calendars can be viewed at:

www.HCDE-Texas.org/District-Calendars

Do not leave kids or pets in a

CLOSED VEHICLE

for any amount of time! Cars can become an oven in just 10 minutes.

ALWAYS • Park safely • Look in your back seat • Lock up

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To report kids or pets in hot cars, CALL 911

August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

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2022

SEE MORE + Wheeler Avenue Church

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H Houston’s 1st Annual Gun BuyBack Program – A Success With 845 Guns Removed and Paidout over $100,000 In Gift Cards H H BIG THANK YOU TO: Mayor Turner, Commissioner Ellis, Congresswomen Lee, HPD Finner and HAUL Robinson H

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August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

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CHEVROLET & THE NNPA ARE CHARGING FORWARD WITH YOUNG TALENT! This HBCU Talent Is Bringing That Energy To Discover The Unexpected 2022

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2022

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H Haute Shots Of The Week H Houston Is A Great Place To Live and Play – We Capture The Haute Shots Every Week!

HEB Supports J Prince – LOYALITY Champaign

2nd Annual Back 2 School Birth Certificate Event

Rodney Ellis Says Don't Mess with Olivia Julianna

Mayor Sylvester Turner Salutes The U.S. Coast Guard's 232nd Birthday Celebration

Rhonda Prince and Bro Bro – J Prince Lauren Lane Congratulates AMA Prez – Dr. Rachel Villanueva Bun B – Trill Burger Voted GMA's Best In USA

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Angelina Jolie Daughter Chose HBCU - Spelman

August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

Congratulations Uncle Funky Larry Jones

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Supporting New Chairman Rev. James Dixon

BEYONCÉ

By Jo-Carolyn Goode – StyleMagazine.com

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nique, strong, and sexy—that’s how Beyoncé wants you to feel while listening to RENAISSANCE. Crafted during the grips of the pandemic, her seventh solo album is a celebration of freedom and a complete immersion into house and dance that serves as the perfect sound bed for themes of liberation, release, self-assuredness, and unfiltered confidence across its 16 tracks.

RENAISSANCE is playful and energetic in a way that captures that Friday-night, just-got-paid, anything-can-happen feeling, underscored by reiterated appeals to unyoke yourself from the weight of others’ expectations and revel in the totality of who you are.

“Creating this album allowed me a place to dream and to find escape during a scary time for the world,” says Bey. “It allowed me to feel free and adventurous in a time when little else was moving. My intention was to create a safe place, a place without judgment.

A place to be free of perfectionism and overthinking. A place to scream, release, feel freedom. It was a beautiful journey of exploration,” said Beyonce about her intentions for the album.

From the classic four-on-thefloor house moods of the Robin S.and Big Freedia-sampling lead single “BREAK MY SOUL” to the Afro-tech of the Grace Jones- and Teams-assisted

RENAISSANCE “MOVE” and the funky, roller-skating disco feeling of “CUFF IT,” this is a massive yet elegantly composed buffet of sound, richly packed with anthemic morsels that pull you in.

There are soft moments here, too: “I know you can’t help but to be yourself around me,” she coos on “PLASTIC OFF THE SOFA,” the kind of warm, whispers-in-the-ear love song you’d expect to hear at a summer cookout—complete with an intricate interplay between vocals and guitar that gives Beyoncé a chance to showcase some

incredible vocal dexterity. “CHURCH GIRL” fuses R&B, gospel, and hip-hop to tell a survivor’s story: “I'm finally on the other side/I finally found the extra smiles/Swimming through the oceans of tears we cried.”

An explicit celebration of Blackness, “COZY” is the mantra of a woman who has nothing to prove to anyone “Comfortable in my skin/Cozy with who I am,” Beyoncé muses on the chorus.

And on “PURE/HONEY,” Beyoncé immerses herself in ballroom culture, incorporating drag performance chants

and a Kevin Aviance sample on the first half that give way to the disco-drenched second half, cementing the song as an immediate dance-floor favorite. It’s the perfect lead-in to the album closer “SUMMER RENAISSANCE,” which propels the dreamy escapist disco of Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love” even further into the future.

Giving the people something different, the Houston born entertainer calls her first album in six years her most ambitious musical project yet. Released on July 29th, the album features sixteen songs. Fans are already calling it the dance part mix of the summer. Fans have missed club hopping and dancing all night. So Queen B gave them something to move their body. There is a little disco and a little techno as she drew from the Black and Latinx ballroom scene. This dance mix is high energy from start-tofinish.

Family is super important to her. In her thank you message on the album, she thanks her children, husband, and her late “Godmother” Uncle Jonny in the 28-page book accompanying the album. In their own way, all served as her personal muse. In addition, she shows appreciation to all the producers, crews, and others involved in her creative process.

Renaissance was Beyonce’s great escape from a scary time that the pandemic created across the world and is part of a three act project. Release dates for acts II and III have not been revealed yet. Just know it’s coming and it will be hot.

www.Beyonce.com

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August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

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ART: 25TH ANNUAL MFA – 5A CITYWIDE EXHIBITION – Winners On Display At T.S.U.'s University Museum, Through Aug 30th

By Kathy Coleman, ARTS Editor – StyleMagazine.com • Newswire

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his year the African American Art Advisory Association (5A) of the Museum of Fine Art Houston celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Citywide African American Artists Exhibition.

The Exhibit will be hosted at different venues and spaces across the city, including the University Museum at Texas Southern University and the Glassell School of Art at the Museum of Fine Arts.

The Houston Citywide African American Artists Exhibition is open to all artists of the African diaspora in the greater Houston area. It is sponsored by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, through 5A (the African American Art Advisory Association at the MFAH) and the University Museum at Texas Southern University.

Citywide Exhibition allows artists to show their work to a broader public and the collecting community.

For the past three decades, the 5A of the Museum of Fine Art Houston – has given hundreds of artists from the Houston area and from the African Diaspora an opportunity to exhibit their works to expanded various audiences.

Michelle Barnes, Founder/Director of the Community Artist Collective, “The Citywide Exhibition, is a testament to the fact that the talent that exists in our

cultural community is deep, diverse, and built on a legacy of creative expressions.”

We have listed the 2022 5A Citywide Artists Exhibit Winners:

5A – Curator’s Choice Award, Glassell School of Art Class Scholarship:

1st Place, $500 Cash Prize:

La’Toya Smith, Let Freedom Reign, 2021, oil paint on canvas

2nd Place Winner, $250 Cash Prize:

Mari Modjo, Regalo, 2020, graphite and charcoal on canvas - medium

James E. Walker, Push the Limit to the Sky, 2020, digital photography & illustration Eddie Filer Jr., Poet, 2022, oil paint on canvas

3rd Place Winner, $150 Cash Prize:

Shawn Artis, Prototype Supreme, 2022, mixed media on wood panel

5A – Honorable Mentions:

Afi Ese, Sir Chesare, 2022, oil paint, silver gilding, and plaster on Masonite Emmanuel Olaiyan, New Heights, 2022, photography

Ernie Barnes, The Sugar Shack, 1976, acrylic on canvas, Collection of William O. Perkins III and Lara Perkins. © Ernie Barnes Family Trust

The Sugar Shack Ernie Barnes

On view for a limited time only Scan and Buy Tickets

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Janice McCloud Warren, #Autism: A Mother’s Outcry, 2020, mixed media

August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

James E. Walker, Push the Limit to the Sky

The 5A Award:

James Walker’s first place winner has several touring art shows and has shown in local venues such as Pancakes & Booze Art Show, All Access Art Show, The Buy Black Marketplace at the Shrine Cultural Center, and Burning Bones Press’ It Came from the Bayou Show at Saint Arnold Brewing.

In addition, exhibition displays of his work can be seen at The Printing Museum here in Houston, Texas, as a part of a permanent installation.

Presently, “The Bridging of a Negative Mindset with Positivity,” an exhibition of portraits by artist Eddie Filer, second place winner, curated by Romeo Robinson. The show is in the Bert Long Memorial Gallery in the Houston Museum of African American Culture.

Third place winner artist Shawn Artis has worked with numerous companies such as Starbucks, McDonald’s, Urban Souls Dance Company, Yellowstone Academy, the YWCA, The Center for Hearing and Speech, IKEA, Celebrate the accomplishments of African American artists by becoming a member of the African American Art Advisory Association (5A). Founded in 1993, 5A has given vital support to the Museum’s collections, education programs, and community outreach. Now in its third decade, 5A again renews its commitment to engage the community, promoting the legacy and future of artwork created by African Americans.

This patron group hosts engaging programs yearly, including private exhibition tours, exclusive receptions, and lectures by renowned artists, curators, and historians. In addition, mem-

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Eddie Filer Jr., Poet

Shawn Artis, Prototype Supreme bership dues support acquiring African or African American art for the MFAH collections and other departmental initiatives and programs that further the Museum’s mission to exhibit and interpret art for all people.

For more info. on MFA’s

5A, please call: 713-639-7594.

Or go to: www.MFAH.org/ patron-groups/african-american-art-advisory-association

15th Annual

BACK SCHOOL Drive & Health Fair to

School Supplies*

Community Resources

Books & Giveaways

Children's Vaccines and COVID-19 Vaccines

Saturday August 6th at 10am PlazAmericas 7500 Bellaire Blvd Houston, TX 77036

Children's immunizations Call for appointment: 832-824-6355

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*while supplies last

More info: TheAllianceTX.org/back-to-school

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August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

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ART: The Ensemble Theatre Honored With The Theatre Longevity Award At National Black Film Theatre Festival

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By Kathy Coleman, ARTS Editor – StyleMagazine.com • Newswire

he Ensemble Theatre has long been a center for the history, culture, and artistic expression of African American theatre arts in the City of Houston.

Founded by George Hawkins in 1976, The Ensemble Theatre has grown to become a beacon of Black excellence and a focal point of Black history in the making, not only in the City of Houston, but across the Nation. That is the very legacy that was awarded at this year’s 2022 National Black Theatre Festival. The Ensemble Theatre received the “Theatre Longevity Award” at the Opening Night Gala Awards Banquet on Monday, August 1, 2022, as a part of the historic National Black Theatre Festival.

In addition to receiving this prestigious award, The Ensemble Theatre is also scheduled to perform the production “Too Heavy for Your Pocket.

Too Heavy for Your Pocket originally debuted at The Ensemble Theatre during the 2018-2019 season.

Too Heavy for Your Pocket is a beautifully written play by Jireh Breon Holder and directed by The Ensemble Theatre Artistic Director Eileen J. Morris that takes place in rural Tennessee during the height of the Civil Rights Movement. It is the story of two young couples who struggle to understand justice, love, and their own responsibilities. When

Eileen Morris Leading Ensemble Theatre During 2022 National Black Theatre Festival one of the young men, Bowzie, gets a scholarship to attend Fisk University, he has the opportunity to improve his entire family’s life. His education goes beyond the classroom, as he becomes a Freedom Rider and joins the fight against racism in the Deep South, leaving his obligations as a husband and friend behind. This play takes a closer look at the personal cost and private struggles behind public events. Too Heavy for Your Pocket speaks powerfully about the bonds of friendship and what defines true family. Performances for Too Heavy for Your Pocket will also

We hope you will join us for this Online Conversation on Friday, August 5th at 1:30 p.m. ET. Registration for this hour-long conversation is FREE but required. After you register you will receive a confirmation email with a Zoom

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August 04, 2022 - August 10, 2022

take place at the Salem College Elberson Fine Arts Center-Drama Workshop Theatre at 412 Rams Dr., Winston-Salem, NC. The Ensemble Theatre is scheduled to perform on this Friday, August 5 at 8PM, Saturday, August 6 at 2PM and again on Saturday, August 6 at 8PM. The National Black Theatre Festival was founded by Larry Leon Hamlin and is produced by the North Carolina Repertory Company. The National Black Theatre Festival is a biannual International artistic festival that highlights the history, culture, artistic expressions, and advances in the arena

Superstar Ben Vareen with Eileen Morris

of the Black theatre globally. Held at what has been coined “Black Theatre Holy Ground,” the National Black Theatre Festival not only showcases, promotes, and highlights Black theatre, but also contains artistic expressions and performances in the areas of film, music, spoken word, fashion, academia and fine art. The National Black Theatre Festival also features seminars, workshops, open mic events, gallery tours and traditional African-style open-air markets. Over 30 theatre companies from across the world are invited to perform at the festival.

The National Black Theatre Festival took place from August 1, 2022-August 6, 2022, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

The Ensemble Theatre proudly invites interviews and press coverage from our local media, as this is a legendary moment, not only for The Ensemble Theatre, but for the entire African American and Artistic communities in the City of Houston.

www.EnsembleHouston.com

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ART: Artist Looking At Art – Jenelle Esparza

San Antonio's Fiunding For The Creation of 'Vessels'

By Kathy Coleman, ARTS Editor – StyleMagazine.com • Newswire

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cNay Museum Educator for Family Experiences and accomplished artist, Jenelle Esparza, is featured in the latest Artists Looking at Art (ALA), a series created to salute the vitality of the contemporary art community in the San Antonio area.

Esparza’s new series of textile pieces depicts imagery and patterns that respond to “hyper-local” histories within the South Texas region. The pieces

are abstract representations of earthly and bodily experiences that have been recorded within a landscape.

With experimental weaving techniques, Esparza highlights hidden histories of Mexican American, Tejano, and Indigenous narratives in her home region of South Texas.

ART: Celebrating The Old and The New (Summer 2022)

Friends Of The Texas Historical Commission

A

By Anjali Kaul Zutshi, Special to StyleMagazine.com

very happy summer to you all! It has been a while since we have communicated with you through our newsletter Past Matters, so please bear with this rather long report! There has been a lot happening at the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission over the last few months. In April, the Friends celebrated the 25th anniversary of the founding of the organization at a gala at the Bullock Texas State History Museum. We were honored to present the inaugural Julian Read Award for Philanthropy in Preservation to Texas Historical Commission Chairman John L. Nau, III, for his for his vision, his leadership, and his generosity in furthering the cause of preservation, not just in Texas but nationally.

www.McNayArt.org

As part of our anniversary activities, the Friends has been busy working on overhauling our web presence and we are excited to share that our new and improved website is up and running at the same address, www.thcfriends. org. Please visit the site and engage with the content! And please do let us know what you think – your feedback is important to us!

Continuing with the theme of change, I am happy to introduce to you Kristy Peloquin, our new Development Manager. Kristy comes to the Friends of the THC with a background in teaching and non-profit management and brings a wealth of experience to her role at the Friends. In the meantime, Katie Cukerbaum transitions into a new role as a consultant for the Friends and continues to support us in our programs and communications efforts.

www.THCFriends.org

On view through September 5 Scan and Buy Tickets

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