¡Viva la Fiesta! Houston's Hispanic Icons Honored at Glam Gala

Daniel Ortiz and Quy Tran
¡Viva la Fiesta! Houston's Hispanic Icons Honored at Glam Gala

Marcelo Saenz, Silvia Salle and Adrian Duenas

AROUND 400 HOUSTONIANS dressed up to party down at the Institute of Hispanic Culture of Houston's annual scholarship fundraiser. As with many of the city's best parties, the black-tie to-do was held in the ballroom of the Hilton Americas.


Chaired by Marcelo Saenz, Adrian Duenas and Silvia Salle, the evening raised $300,000 for the nonprofit's mission of promoting inclusive and diverse programming and providing scholarships to exemplary students of Hispanic descent. Some students were presented with their merit-based scholarships at the gala.

The "Viva" event also honored heroes among the Hispanic community: German and Micheline Newall, Ricky Flores and Monica Medina, Jose and Giannina Altuve, Isabel and Ignacio Torras, Mari Carmen Ramirez, Rosalinda Martinez, Silvia Graves, Laura and Rick Jaramillo, and Tony Bonilla Sr.

Emcees Deborah Duncan and Ron Trevino, with the help of energetic ballroom-dance performances, kept the crowd lively — and at the end of the night, the Calle Swing band had everyone on their feet. What a fiesta!

Yordan and Monica Alvarez

Micheline and German Newall

China Contreras, Adrian Duenas, Amanda Edwards, Roberto Contreras IV and Marcelo Saenz

Nina Altuve

Milka Waterland, Rania Edlebi and Elia Gabbanneli

Yordan Alvarez and Mayte Weitzman

Carmen Herrada

Parties

Gerard O’Brien, Founder of Texas Entrepreneurial Summit

YOU HAVE BEEN successful with ORION Ambulance Services and various other business interests; how do you plan to diversify and potentially share your insights with others? A great deal of my excitement for this year comes from an opportunity to assist a crucial group of the Houston community: our local entrepreneurs. I believe that a key metric of the health of a region’s society is the success of local business owners. Consequently, I am forming the Texas Entrepreneurial Summit, a series of speaking seminars featuring myself and other entrepreneurs across a spectrum of industries. Together, we will offer new, or established, business owners glimpses of our own experiences through not only the uplifting aspects of being an entrepreneur, but also the treacheries of running a business. It will focus on the successes and failures we have experienced, as well as our strategies for confronting and overcoming relatable challenges throughout our careers.

Keep Reading Show less

Spring veggies at the Urban Harvest Farmers Market

THIRTY YEARS AGO, Urban Harvest – what some Houstonians think of as our awesome farmers market – was founded on the belief that people can feed and revitalize their communities by growing healthy food. This core tenant led to the creation of one of the largest networks of community gardens in the United States to address vital issues like hunger, health, community development, and ecological land management.

Keep Reading Show less
Food