Excitement over the swank setting trumped nostalgia when the Petroleum Club of Houston celebrated the grand opening of its new location atop the 35-story Total Plaza. In addition to comforting memorabilia from the original, grand views of the downtown skyline from the new perch were not unlike those of the club's previous home at the ExxonMobil Building.
Thus, it was a happy time for more than 300 members who turned out for the black-tie dinner and dance. Allison and Tommy Edwards and Daniel Moreno did the ribbon cutting honors that opened the party gates on the evening dubbed "A Black Gold Affair." In homage to the gilded oil field days, guests were greeted by a woman in a gold gown with a skirt comprised of scores of champagne flutes filled with bubbly.
In homage to the gilded oil field days, guests were greeted by a woman in a gold gown with a skirt comprised of scores of champagne flutes.
There were applause aplenty for Judy Seré, who received the Member of the Year award for her successful efforts at overseeing design of the club's interiors. That meant skillfully preserving historical design elements and artwork from the storied club that was founded in the early 1960s.
The inaugural frolic included dinner and dancing to the sounds of Doppleganger in the large ballroom, sampling from a sushi bar in a second ballroom and grazing through a dessert room. The latter included oodles of mini-sweets, a 10-foot tall cheese display and an espresso bar with two baristas.
Preserving the opening of this new generation Petroleum Club, the Young Professionals Association organized a time capsule that included a brief documentary on the new club by Magan Hunt and Lynn Birdwell.
The party crowd included Claudia and Ford Frost, Kathy and Ted Zwieg, Debbie and David Edwards, Randall Walker, Sylvia and Brian Malarkey, Karen and Reese Lockett, Chris Olexy, Katherine and Mark Yzaguirre, Mary Jane Zumo and Colette and Michael Leonard.
Daniel Moreno, left, with Allison and Tommy Edwards.
