Looking Good

Home gets an extreme makeover for Spring family with life-threatening illness

What began as a play set provided by a local realty firm for its annual community service project turned into a entire remodeled house for a family with children still recovering from years of battling a life-threatening illness.

Meet Rhenee and Kevin Berger, three of whose five children had been diagnosed with leukocyte adhesion deficiency, a rare disorder that leaves patients without a functioning immune system. The children are now healthy, thanks to bone marrow transplants from sibling donors; however, they will need yearly exams the rest of their lives.

After moving out during the eight-day transformation, the family returned in a limo to see their remodeled home with $60,000 worth of renovations.

“I found out about this amazing family through the Periwinkle Foundation, which sent my son to camp after his cancer diagnosis four years ago,” Michelle Tsatsaronis, a Realtor with Keller Williams Realty The Woodlands, said in a press release. “I thought we could do something nice for the children as part of Keller Williams’ Red Day."

The realty group was just about to purchase the playground equipment when officials at Gracepoint Homes learned that the Bergers didn't have enough bedrooms for the children in their 2,800-square-foot home in Spring and pitched in on the project.

After moving out during the eight-day transformation, the family returned in a limo to see their remodeled home with $60,000 worth of renovations on Thursday. Raylee Berger, 4, was thrilled to find her bedroom outfitted for a princess — complete with a chandelier. Aiden, 8 and, Joshua, 9, were excited to see their bedroom, now with bunk beds and plenty of storage below, decorated in a Houston Texans theme on one side and Dallas Cowboys on the other.

Kevin, the oldest son at age 11, loves his new Longhorn-themed bedroom, and Zachary, 17 months, has a nautical-inspired nursery.

And in the back yard, the swing set that started the project in motion, gleamed in the sunlight as the kids raced outside to play.

Michelle Tsatsaronis with Keller Williams Realty The Woodlands and Tom Cox Jr., president of Gracepoint Homes.

Gracepoint Homes and Keller Williams home renovation surprise May 2014 Michelle and Tom

Photo by © Ted Washington

Michelle Tsatsaronis with Keller Williams Realty The Woodlands and Tom Cox Jr., president of Gracepoint Homes.

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the power of time

State-of-the-art Houston art installation will generate clean energy

Rendering courtesy Land Art Generator Initiative.

A rendering previews the Arch of Time.

Local and state leaders shared updated plans this month on a first-of-its-kind structure that uses art to generate solar energy.

Slated to be located at Mason Park in Houston’s East End, the new "Arch of Time" is a freestanding sundial art installation that will generate 400,000 kilowatt-hours of power per year using 60,000 solar photovoltaic cells on its south-facing exterior.

The project will be part of a larger pavilion at the park and is being led by the renewable energy organization Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI). Architect Riccardo Mariano will design the space. It will be funded by donations and cost $20 million, organizers say.

The project, originally known as "Arco del Tiempo," was announced in 2023. At the time, the city shared the installation would be installed at Guadalupe Plaza Park in 2024.

The project's latest update was announced during Houston City Hall’s Earth Day 2025, where organizers described it as "a monument to Houston's past, present, and future leadership as the energy capital of the world."

The 100-foot structure will also serve as a 25,000-square-foot shaded area, or microclimate, during hot days. It will also feature a stage performance space and a power hub for emergencies. Due to the artwork's north opening and south narrowing, it is also expected to help channel the breezes, according to LAGI.

The organization says it is also expected to generate enough power to fuel all of Mason Park.

“Mason Park will soon, perhaps become the first major park in the country that is powered entirely by the sun,” Houston City Council Member Joaquin Martinez said at the news conference. “The economic benefits are clear.”

Former Houston Park and Recreation director Joe Turner selected the East End park as the location of the arch and believes it could be used as a STEM tool for students.

“All the STEM education that can come from the way we use the solar collectors, the way it has a water collection system that's going to collect the runoff water, there's so much we can do to teach kids STEM,” said in a Houston Park and Recreation Department video.

The project is about two years away from being completed. LAGI says the Arch of Time will be the “first public art project of its scale to stand as a net-positive contribution to a sustainable climate.”

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This story originally appeared on our sister site, EnergyCapitalHTX.

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