Harvard University Club of Houston to Host Crimson Award Gala on May 6, 2022

    HOUSTON, TX, April 30, 2022 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Harvard University Club of Houston will host the 2022 Crimson Award Gala on Friday, May 6, at The Houstonian Hotel. The black-tie event is open to the public, as well as to the more than 2,500 Harvard alumni in the greater Houston area. The Gala will benefit the Houston Learning Network, while also honoring Michael "Mack" Fowler (HBS 1973), George Strake (MBA 1961), and H. Malcolm Stewart for their contributions to Houston.

The Gala will include a cocktail reception, dinner, awards ceremony, silent auction, and live auction. Gala Co-Chairs are Julia Bailey, Esther Olivarez, and Kathe Pate. The Emcee is Deborah Duncan from KHOU. Entertainment will be provided by Vel Lewis and his Band.

During the Gala, the Harvard University Club of Houston's Crimson Awards for Education, Leadership, and Community Service will be presented to Mack Fowler and George Strake and the inaugural Crimson Community Award will be presented to Malcolm Stewart. Past Crimson Award recipients include Judy Ley Allen (MBA 1963), head of Allen Investments; Laura E. Arnold (AB 1994), Co-Chair of Arnold Ventures; Gordon Bethune, former Chairman of Continental Airlines Inc.; Dr. Nancy Chang, former President and CEO of Tanox Inc.; Harris "Shrub" Kempner, Jr. (AB 1961), President of Kempner Capital Management; Dr. John Mendelsohn, President of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; and Robert T. Sakowitz (AB 1960), President of Hazak Corporation.

Proceeds from the Gala will primarily benefit the Houston Learning Network, a spinoff of a Harvard University Club of Houston initiative established to send Houston-area teachers and other educators to the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) each year to learn cutting-edge educational best practices for the benefit of students in the greater Houston area.

"The Harvard Club acts as a bridge between Harvard and the wider community of Houston," says Julia Bailey, a past president of the Club as well as a co-chair of this year's Gala. "Harvard's mission is education, and service is important to Harvard alumni. We're raising money for these programs because we believe in Houston and want to impact education in the city at large."

Proceeds from the Gala also benefit the Harvard Club's Schools and Scholarship Program, which ensures that each year more than 1,000 student applicants to Harvard College receive an alumni interview and provides Harvard alumni outreach to more than 150 schools in the Houston area at college fairs and information sessions, and the Summer Community Service Fellowship program, which provides financial support for current Harvard College students who work at Houston non-profit organizations during the summer.

The Harvard Crimson Gala will begin at 6 p.m. at The Houstonian with a cocktail reception and silent auction. The dinner, award presentation, and live auction start at 7:30 p.m. Ticket prices start at $250 for club members, $350 for non-members.

For ticket and sponsorship details, visit http://www.hclubhouston.com.

For more information, call Club Administrator Maureen Garnett at (713) 660-9137 or contact Marion Keller at (832) 466-6719 or [email protected].

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