$15,000 donation

Yoga connection spurs country star Lee Ann Womack to help Healthcare for theHomeless

Lee Ann Womack performs at the Congressional Club's Centennial First Lady'sLuncheon[https://thegeorgetowndish.com/thedish/first-lady-gets-out-white-house-charity]in Washington, D.C.
Photo by John Lewis
Kevin Whelton, from left, U.S. Rep. Gene Green and wife Helen Green, Dr. DavidBuck and Frances Isbell proudly display donation to Houston Healthcare for theHomeless from Lee Ann Womack.

Healthcare for the Homeless–Houston, the organization that champions accessible health care for homeless individuals, doesn't get a lot of celebrity attention. So leaders were floored when they found out that country singer Lee Ann Womack had donated $15,000 to the organization.

Helen Green, wife of U.S. Rep. Gene Green, presented the check during a recent HHH monthly board meeting.

The donation came after Helen Green asked Womack to perform at the Congressional Club's Centennial First Lady's Luncheon in Washington, D.C. The Congressional Club is a non-partisan organization made up of spouses of members of Congress, the Supreme Court and the president's cabinet.

"I'd never met Lee Ann Womack and had no idea why she selected us. We didn't know how it happened. But we were so happy!"

Green served as chair of this year's luncheon, which celebrated the organization's 100th anniversary. In addition to highlighting Texas singer Womack (Green is a big fan, recalling that at her son's wedding, they danced to "I Hope You Dance"), the luncheon featured such Texas touches as Blue Bell vanilla ice cream, yellow roses and gift bags featuring Texas wildflower seeds, chili mix and pecan coffee.

Womack donated her appearance and, to thank her, Green asked the singer to pick a charity to receive donation. Womack had learned of HHH because her sister-in-law, Houston singer Lise Liddell, attends class at Tejas Yoga, the Kirby Drive yoga studio, with HHH founder and president David Buck, and praised the organization.

Buck attended the luncheon where he met first lady Michelle Obama, who thanked him for the work HHH does, and was surprised to learn of the donation.

"I'd never met Lee Ann Womack and had no idea why she selected us," Buck recalled in a press release announcing the donation. "We didn't know how it happened. But we were so happy!"

He added that, having met his fiancée at the yoga class, and now with this donation, he plans to be a class regular.

See video of "I Hope You Dance"

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Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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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.”