Celebrating the Spectrum: Several New Bizzes Promote Neurodiversity and Inclusion

Celebrating the Spectrum: Several New Bizzes Promote Neurodiversity and Inclusion

The Belong Kitchen staff / photo by Marlo Wise

A NUMBER OF Houston organizations and businesses are championing neurodiversity and inclusion leading up to National Disability Employment Awareness Month, which begins tomorrow.


Belong Kitchen just opened in the Memorial area, offering grab-and-go family meals crafted by adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Offerings vary each day — and often run out within just a few hours! Specials include Mexican lasagna and hot-honey-pretzel chicken tenders.

Earlier this year, Social Motion Skills and the Center for Pursuit united to form a partnership dubbed the Center of Excellence, which will serve adults and children with IDD. Here, the Aspire Accessories workshop — where individuals with autism and similar special needs create one-of-a-kind jewelry, art and home décor — will find a new home.

And today, Spectrum Fusion, founded in 2018 as an offshoot of a successful Australian program by the same name, unveils its new headquarters on Bissonnet, where adults on the autism spectrum can nurture their creative talents. The Spectrum Fusion Media Team, for example, is comprised of Houston videographers, editors, writers, graphic designers and actors, all of whom are on the spectrum; the team has done work for clients such as Johnson & Johnson and the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra.

At 2,400-square-feet, the new West U HQ will offer plenty of space for collaboration and community, and will also focus on promoting neurodiversity in the workplace.

The Spectrum Fusion Media Team / via Instagram


People + Places
Consistent Focus on the Patient Is What Sets Montrose Med Spa Apart

Owner Maricela Olivo and Montrose Med Spa

WHAT MAKES MONTROSE Med Spa stand apart from the competition? We set ourselves apart from the competition by being consistently focused on one thing: the patient. With that focus, we will succeed in a successful and healthy experience and loyalty to Montrose Med Spa. Staying true to our message of intentional wellness is a point of difference where I see other spas being unclear and distracted in their direction. By listening to our patients, we ensure we meet and exceed their expectations. We continually stay on top of the market by offering the best innovative body sculpting and skin treatments that invigorate and energize and are specifically designed to restore balance and strength and renew youth to the body. We also utilize a number of marketing programs to stay on the minds of our guests, including radio, TV, direct mail, email blasts, and unique invitations for exclusive treatments. One element that helps to establish the bar and sets us apart from our competition is our emphasis on providing a complete medical gym experience—from the varied treatments with Emsculpt Neo to a personalized health and wellness and skin evaluation for each individual by our certified staff. We also provide a noninvasive, pain-free, and needle-free facelift through EMFace in addition to offering monthly beauty memberships that create a commitment to the overall wellbeing of the patient.

Keep Reading Show less

Bill Viola’s ‘Ascension,’ on display as part of ‘Living with the Gods’ at MFAH

THE ARTIST WHO ushered in the expressionist movement in the early 20th century was not, in fact, Picasso or Matisse. It was Paul Gauguin, whose career spanned the decades just preceding the turn of the century. The French painter is the subject of the Museum of Fine Arts’ latest exhibit, Gauguin in the World, which was organized by Henri Loyrette (formerly of the Louvre and the Musée d’Orsay, Paris). The show, just one of the museum’s diverse winter season shows, debuted in Australia in June and will be on display through Feb. 16, 2025, at the MFAH, the only U.S. venue for the survey.

Keep Reading Show less
Art + Entertainment

Cirque du Soleil's 'Echo'


Keep Reading Show less
Art + Entertainment