Head to Minute Maid to appear on ‘Ellen’
Get your dancing shoes, or baseball cleats, ready because the “Ellen DeGeneres Show” is coming to Minute Maid Park.
On May 22 (that’s today), fans will have a chance to be part of a segment of “Ellen” but only if they have a ticket to the game and can commit two hours to the show. The entrance for the segment taping will open at 3 p.m. and remain open until 3:45 p.m., unless capacity is reached earlier.
Those chosen for the segment won’t be able to leave the plaza on Crawford (between Left Field Gate and Center Field Gate) until taping is finished. Look for “Ellen” entrance signage.
All participants will receive the Yuli Gurriel “Swing” Bobblehead once taping is complete. Snacks and water will be available for purchase, and the segment will be shot outside.
Last Thursday, the talk show host and comedian posted a cryptic tweet: “If you’re a fan of the Houston @Astros, and watch my show, I am looking for you. I can’t tell you why, but you’re gonna want to click this link.” The show called for fans in the Houston area who could use help from Ellen and encouraged them to share their personal stories of why they deserved financial help and tickets to an Astros game.
Superfan Jennifer Walsh not only clicked the link, she also offered something more. What Walsh shared was a story of losses incurred by Hurricane Harvey in Baytown and Goose Creek Independent School District. She is the vice president of the Goose Creek Education Foundation, which raises money to fund grants for area teachers who have innovative ideas to ignite the minds of students and interesting ways to reach them, she said.
“I believe the way out of the cycle of being economically disadvantaged is education,” Walsh said. “Add in Hurricane Harvey, Baytown was hit really hard, and we saw the foundation really come through for teachers that were affected.”
The foundation gave new mattresses to students and families, shoes and school supplies after the disaster.
In a challenge to Ellen, Walsh wants to auction a custom-made gown that she wore to the foundation’s All-Star gala last year, which was held at the ballpark.
“It was pretty expensive. It was definitely more than your average prom dress; probably more close to a high-end designer gown,” Walsh said. “I love this dress; I don’t know what to do with it, but I love it so much.”
With the Astros logo embroidered on the train of the dress (she had to get special permission from the team to do that), orange-bottomed stiletto heels and custom-made earrings, the self-described super fan pulled out all the stops for the gala.
This is where Ellen could factor in. Walsh hopes the dress will be auctioned off, so the money will go back to the foundation. She’d also like Astros tickets for the school district’s teachers.
“We haven’t received anything back, but it’s gained a lot of momentum at least among the school district,” she said. “They’re excited, and hopefully she would take us up on that.”