On Exhibit

Two Houston institutions hosted truly museum-quality galas, showing off beautiful exhibition spaces in grand new ways. The Asia Society Texas Center’s annual bash, the black-tie Tiger Ball, celebrated the beauty and culture of India. Honoring Shushila and Durga Agrawal and raising more than $1 million, the colorful event moved from the grand hall out to a massive tent, where Bollywood dancers performed for guests. Meanwhile, the Houston Museum of Natural Science also hosted its yearly gala, which adopted the theme of the Big Bang Ball and celebrated the newly renovated Burke Baker Planetarium. Chemistry demonstrations entertained guests, who sipped cocktails made with liquid nitrogen and helped raise more than $850K for the museum’s educational programs. Talk about a big bang!


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Leadership in Action: John Kuykendall Traded Newcaster Dream for Success in Luxury Retail

John Kuykendall, Showroom Manager, Sub-Zero, Wolf and Cove

How did you get to where you are today? Growing up I had envisioned myself as a news anchor, living in NY and enthusiastically saying into the camera “Good Morning America!”. To this day, I am still a news/political junkie. My mother owned fur salons so specialty retail, luxury retail was in my blood through the family business. Eventually, mom shuttered the stores and I was recruited to a large specialty retailer. Over the next 30 years, I was in commissioned sales on the sales floor, became a department manager, worked my way up to buyer and store manager. Although I never became a newscaster, I did live in NYC for a few years. But Texas is home and with aging grandparents, I felt the pull to come back to my roots. A headhunter approached me. I never envisioned myself in the high-end appliance market, but there are so many similarities. Clients want a memorable experience; whether shopping for diamonds and fur or remodeling their kitchen.

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A BIG CROWD turned up at the Post Oak Hotel for the Children at Risk gala, raising some $360,000 focused on “understanding and addressing the root causes of child poverty and inequality,” per its mission statement.

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SpaceX Crew - Scott Poteet, Sarah Gillis, Anna Memon, Jared Isaacman

STREAMERS FILLED THE air at the end of the night as 500 guests at the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital gala celebrated raising a record $1.65 million.

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