Shelby's Social Diary

U.S. Surgeon General helps Houston Chapter of Links celebrate 60 years

Photo by Kenneth Jones/Ken Jones Photography
Photo by Kenneth Jones/Ken Jones Photography
Photo by Kenneth Jones/Ken Jones Photography
Photo by Kenneth Jones/Ken Jones Photography
Photo by Kenneth Jones/Ken Jones Photography

Celebrating 60 years of service to the community, the Houston Chapter of Links took over the ballroom of the Omni Houston Hotel for a luncheon fete featuring U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin. While Benjamin is not a member of the national organization, her life of service follows the example of the Links credo.

Benjamin spoke to the group of 600 women and a sprinkling of men about her amazing career beginning with her work to establish a clinic to help uninsured residents in a small poverty-stricken fishing village in Alabama and the journey that led her to Washington and advising President Barack Obama. A number of guests attending were medical doctors, including a group of young female residents who drove in from Galveston's University of Texas Medical Branch.

The event was chaired by Winell Herron and Diedra Fontaine, who gave a personal welcome to special guests NASA astronauts Dr. Bobby Satcher, Leland Melvin and Joan Higginbotham.

The heavy-hitter gathering included Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, Links chapter president Jackye Alton, former Mayor Lee Brown and wife Frances, City Controller Ron Green and Hilary Harmon Green, City Councilwoman Wanda Adams, Dr. Edith Irby Jones, Sharron Melton, Argentina James, Diane and John Peavy, Cora and Judson Robinson, Audrey Lawson, Gaynell Drexler, Sharon Owens, Judge Vanessa Gilmore and Channel 13 news anchor Melanie Lawson, who served as emcee.

Funds raised from the luncheon will benefit scholarship and wellness programs for women.

unspecified

raising glasses

Wine and dine raises spirits for Houston's Catholic Charities

Catholic Charities wine and dine fundraiser 2024

Photo by Johnny Than

Alicia Reggie Freysinger, His Eminence Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, Catholic Charities President Cynthia Nunes Colbert.

An evening of fine dining and philanthropy unfolded at The Revaire for the 2024 Wine and Dine Dinner, benefitting Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston on November 16. With wine glasses in hand and wallets wide open, the stylish and pious savored a night dedicated to lifting up the most vulnerable in the community.

Co-chairs Mikki Hebl and David E. Harvey, Jr., alongside Kerri and Downey Bridgwater, welcomed the crowd, which included His Eminence Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, who blessed the meal. The highlight? A four-course feast by master sommelier Brandon Kerne and chef Ryan Bouillet, paired with wines selected to enhance each bite.

An interactive twist with the secret sip challenge surely added a playful element. Attendees worked together to identify the mystery wine — a 2015 Merite Cabernet Sauvignon from Australia’s Wrattonbully region.

But the night wasn’t just about indulgence. The live auction, emceed by Johnny Bravo, and a moving “fund a need” segment inspired oenophiles to dig deep for Catholic Charities’ programs. Last year, the organization served people in need 358,000 times across Harris, Fort Bend, and Galveston counties, providing essentials like food, housing assistance, and legal aid for immigrants.

Generous support came from sponsors like the Hildebrand Foundation, Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, and Cuenod Families.

Wining and dining were Alicia Reggie Freysinger, Cynthia Nunes Colbert, Penny and Paul Layne, Monit Cheung and Patrick Leung, Ashley and Doug Plaeger, Sandi and Jim Lemming, Carol and Paul Beck, Louise and Bob Parsley, Avalyn Langemeier, Suzanne Werner, Amie Springmeyer, Lori Hessel, Ginger Niemann, Peggy Idstein, Karina and Mark Amelang,and Ellen and Jim Ginty.

Photo by Johnny Than

Alicia Reggie Freysinger, His Eminence Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, Catholic Charities President Cynthia Nunes Colbert.

catholic charities of the archdiocese of galveston-houston fundraisers