Houston Parks Board marks 40th anniversary with luncheon.
“The weather is absolutely perfect — for July,” quipped Mayor Pro Tem Ellen Cohen at the Houston Parks Board annual luncheon.
The sunny skies painted a beautiful, albeit sweltering, scene for the al fresco 40th anniversary celebration. When Cohen invited the 350 guests packed into white tents in Hermann Square at City Hall to toast the organization’s yearlong celebration, the sea of dripping water glasses and iced teas that were, well, no longer iced, elicited a giggle or two from the crowd.
Still, the festive occasion presided over by Carter Stern, who introduced himself as a “reformed trial attorney,” was both successful and informative. Luncheon chairs Marie Louise and David Kinder raised a commendable $580,000 toward the transformative work that will enhance our city’s greenways.
“Think of how healthy you are by just sitting out here eating lunch,” said Beth White Houston, the Parks Board’s newly minted president and CEO. The luncheon doubled as her “welcome to town” party.
The Chicago transplant went on to share that Clean Line Energy president Michael Skelly and Stern took her on a bike tour when she first arrived.
Our parks will be connected through Bayou Greenways, she explained.
The Houston Parks Board’s primary goal is to link 150 miles of hike-andbike trails by transforming underutilized land along nine major waterways through 2020.
Guest speaker Timothy Beatley discussed the emergence of biophilic cities, citing E.O. Wilson’s definition of urban areas that are green, growing, organic and filled with nature.
“Your assignment is to work those words into conversation today,” instructed the professor of sustainable communities at the University of Virginia.
Through a series of slides, he employed lecture hall tactics to campaign for cities that are more compact and dense.
The benefits, Beatley said, are that access to nature reduces stress, keeps us calm, helps engage conversation, forges friendship and promotes cooperation and generosity.