I fell in love with an American (Texan) in Paris (was working for American company in the city) first date at the top of the Eiffel Tower (BEFORE it was cool, worst food in Paris at that time, only the tourists, who didn’t know any better ever ate there!!), however, he soon overcame that false start and after 9 months we were engaged – as my mother said when I called her and told her I met someone … “ …. Please tell me he is NOT French!!, no, I said, he’s a Texan!” We married in native England, honeymoon in the Bahamas and then arrived in Houston!!! was soooo homesick – brother in law bought me a puppy to help ease my pain – I fell in love all over again… Shortly, after puppy arrived, just 8 weeks, Dick was out fishing with his father, I didn’t have a driver’s license at that time, puppy fell off the bed, thought he had broken his leg, cried like a baby (which he was) called mother in law who raced over, it was a Sunday (before Gulf Coast Vet. Emergency clinic) we eventually found a vet that was open – waited and waited for him to finish with another emergency, all the time trying to calculate whether I had enough money to pay him (VERY poor from funding aforementioned wedding and glam honeymoon!!) when we finally got to see him, he was sooo wonderful, told me good news, nothing wrong with puppy, he was crying like a baby because he was a baby…. I thought oh great, now I have to tell Dick I took puppy to vet and paid many $$$$ for no reason… Vet then asked me ‘ … how did you get to Texas?” told him story, met a Texan in Paris, fell in love, ya da, ya, da, ya da … also told him my boss in Paris was an Aggie – noticed he too was a graduate of the Texas A&M school of vet. Medicine – so mentioned how kind my Aggie had been, had given me a wonderful surprise bon voyage party when I left Paris for England … he listened, was kind and gentle the way all vets seem to be (perhaps this is the answer to the healthcare situation in America, let’s swop out doctors for vets) … when I went to check out, holding my breath that I had enough money to pay the bill, his receptionist told me “ …. This one is on us, welcome to Texas!!!” It was such unexpected kindness, that it still makes me pause … that’s when I fell in love with Houston… to paraphrase Gertrude Stein, a wonderfull American who made her home in Paris, “ … England is my country, but Houston is my hometown!”
Thanks, Queen Bey
Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School
Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.
“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”
The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.
Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.
Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.
“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”