The Tribble School at the Queensbury Theatre still has availability for select summer camps. Do you have a child who is interested in dance, stage management or play writing? Check out the offerings at the Tribble School and watch their imagination take flight. Visit www.tribbleschool.org/summer-2017.html for details today!
Have a glass of lemonade on Sunday, June 11 from 5 - 8 PM in the plaza with Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, a national childhood cancer foundation dedicated to raising funds for research into new treatments and cures for all children battling cancer. For more information or to donate, visit the Le Family’s Facebook event page.
Breakout the fanny packs and scrunchies for this throwback movie series!
The Square at Memorial CIty is taking it back to the 80s all in June with classics like ET, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Ghostbusters, and Back to the Future and more. Complimentary popcorn will be served and blankets and lawn chairs are encouraged.
Every Thursday in June from 7-9pm!
Here’s your chance to audition for Wheel of Fortune! Show us what you’ve got at the #Wheelmobile event at Memorial City on Saturday, June 10th and Sunday, June 11th from 1pm – 5pm each day. Shows are one hour long with lots of puzzles, prizes and fun! For more info visit khou.com/wheelmobile. We can’t wait to see you there! Ample parking will be available on the surface lots and parking garages around the mall.
A contestant audition does not guarantee a spot on the show. The applicant understands that Wheel of Fortune is under no obligation to use him/her as a contestant. Selection of contestants is at the producers’ sole discretion.
©2017 Califon Productions, Inc. Wheel of Fortune is a registered trademark of Califon Productions, Inc. All rights reserved.
With a focus on supporting local organizations, empowering employees and building a corporate culture of service, the Midway Foundation invests in its community.
The Foundation, headed by executive director Claudia Freels, was established in 2003 as a means for Midway, the real estate investment and development company behind CityCentre, to annually give back a portion of its profits. Since its creation, the Midway Foundation has gifted $4 million to local charities.
Brad Freels, Midway’s chairman, says, “For years, we gave to different things as people came and asked. In 2004, we centralized the foundation and tried to create a focus that was a little more directive. We try to focus on things that our employees are interested in ... If there’s a common thread it’s children.”
Claudia adds, “We try to empower the Midway team members to serve the underprivileged, support education, improve health and strengthen our communities.”
The Midway Foundation is an extension of the corporate culture and company initiatives present within Midway. The Foundation will match employee financial support for an organization up to $500 per employee annually. Each employee is given one day a month to give back to the charity of their choice. Employees are encouraged to find an area they are passionate about and give their time. The company also tries to organize a company-wide volunteer day once a year. Last year, they worked in teams homebuilding for Rebuilding Together Houston.
The Foundation supports school drives and holiday gift drives, the Salvation Army, Harbor Lights Choir, Casa de Esparanza, Spring Spirit, Dress for Success, and Trees for Houston among many other local organizations.
One of the Foundation’s large projects this year is a facility for Halo House. Founded in 2009 by Dr. Nathan Fowler of MD Anderson, Halo House offers reduced-cost housing for patients and families in town for blood cancer treatment.
Another avenue of income for the Midway Foundation is the b4 hand sanitizer products produced by Midway Advanced Products, a division of Midway. Concerned that slower Houston markets in the real estate recession meant charities were receiving fewer donations, Brad came up with an idea for a product that could be produced to make its own revenue, which could go back to helping others. B4 products are distributed wholesale through select travel partners. The b4 mission aims to give 50% of the proceeds from sales of its products to Midway Foundation charities.
The Midway Foundation has a vision of creating and supporting “enduring investments and remarkable places that enrich people’s lives.” Both Brad and Claudia Freels believe that employees are given many talents to make them successful in investment and commercial development that translate into success outside the office as well. They hope to encourage employees and others to take their talents and use them to serve, support and grow their communities. Chairman Freels says, “You’ve got to learn to give when you don’t have it, so you know how to give when you do.”
The encouragement is inspiring Midway employees to use their talents for new and innovative service.
For example, a Midway engineer was made aware of air conditioning problems faced by Yellowstone Academy. He inspected the Midway-owned buildings fronting I-10 that were slated for demolition and discovered the chillers were only 5 years old. He took initiative to organize sub-contractors to remove them from the old buildings and install them at Yellowstone Academy. Freels notes, “He saw a problem, figured out a solution and made the solution happen.”
The community focus headed up by the Foundation can be seen at CityCentre as well. Child Advocates holds a fun run starting from the plaza every fall; one of the fountains on the plaza is dedicated to Living Water; and a portion of all paid parking at CityCentre goes to support Memorial Assistance Ministries (MAM). Claudia says, “I just knew MAM was a great organization, so when we were changing over our meters to start charging, it just seemed logical that if we were collecting from the community, we should be giving back. MAM is a local Spring Branch charity that gives back to this community.”
Through the empowerment of employees and investment of time and profits into the community, the Midway Foundation hopes to build more than great places for families to live, work and play in the Memorial District.
Looking for a special way to celebrate this Memorial Day? Here are some events happening in the Memorial District.
Memorial City Mall
Memorial Day Program of Remembrance
9:00 am - 11:00 am @ Memorial City Mall Food Court
Join the Memorial City Gang for a morning of remembrance in the food court. Enjoy refreshments, while celebrating the traditions, history and military service in the United States.
3:00 pm - 6:00 pm @ The Square at Memorial City
Join us in celebrating Memorial Day in Memorial City at our Patriotic Party at The Square on Monday, May 29th from 3pm-6pm!
Flag Presentation ∙ Live Country Music ∙ Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs ∙ Beach Ball Drop ∙ Face Painting ∙ Balloon Art & MORE!
CityCentre
A Day of Service
Join Pines Presbyterian Church in the plaza on Sunday, May 28 from 5 - 7 PM for a service project to salute our men and women of service. A card making station will be setup to write notes of encouragement to Wounded Warriors, veterans and their families receiving support from the PTSD Foundation of America’s Camp Hope in Houston, Texas. Other activities include patriotic karaoke and face painting.
At 6:30 PM, with your help, the plaza will transform into an America flag; wear your red, white or blue to be a part of the human flag photo.
Summer Tribute Concert Series
Memorial Day weekend gets a special spotlight with four nights of music to kick off, celebrate and send off the holiday celebration. It’s not just a tribute to the country, but a tribute to some of the great bands that have shaped it. The Summer Tribute Concert Series is presented in partnership with The Memorial Buzz.
Friday, May 26 from 7 - 10 PM: Nightbird (Fleetwood Mac/Stevie Nicks Tribute Band)
Saturday, May 27 from 7 - 10 PM: ZZ Roxx (ZZ Top Tribute Band)
Sunday, May 28 from 7 - 10 PM: Heart to Heart (Inspirational)
Monday, May 29 from 4 - 7 PM: Almost Endless Summer (Beach Boys Tribute Band)
As a courtesy, no outside food or beverages are allowed. Our restaurants offer delicious menu items that can also conveniently be taken to-go.
Have you visited The Square at Memorial City Mall yet?
The Square at Memorial City is an all-new green space located on the west end of the mall, outside Ice Skate USA and between The Cheesecake Factory and Maggiano's Little Italy.
The 4,000 square foot outdoor venue, complete with a 28' X 14' high-definition video screen and attractive water features, is the new home for culture and entertainment in the Memorial area and West Houston.
The Square offers family-friendly events that are sure to delight your senses every week. From live music, kid-friendly events and fitness classes, there’s a little something for everyone.
Check out our events calendar to see what’s happening this weekend at the Square!
Houston Community College (HCC) and Spring Branch nonprofit organization Newspring held its annual Business Plan Competition Awards Ceremony on May 2 at the Trini Mendenhall Community Center. With 135 local business owners, community leaders, judges, advisors, trainers and volunteers in attendance, the event was a culmination of 3 months of challenging business training for the participants.
From the 90 applicants and 33 teams chosen to compete, 24 teams completed the rigorous competition. The top five were selected to win approximately $35,000 in seed money and in-kind prizes to help fulfill their entrepreneurial dreams.
The winners of the 2017 HCC-Newspring Business Plan Competition are:
Stem Cell Security, 1st place, $12,000
SpenDebt, 2nd place, $8,000
Wanderlust Houston, 3rd place, $4,000
Accelerated Quality Solutions, Honorable Mention, $1,000
Summer Creek Dance Studio, Honorable Mention, $1,000
“Stem Cell Security really got off the ground because of our experience at HCC,” said Doris Taylor of the 1stplace team. “Not only did we gain invaluable insight from industry leaders and amazing advisers, we won funds that enable us to begin our journey. These funds will be used to create our early pitch media, will help us get our legal footing and will empower us to move into our first office space. SCS exists because HCC-Newspring kickstarted us.”
The business training provided from February through April is a critical part of the competition. “Having assigned advisors (an executive from BBVA Bank and local CPA business owner) whom were 100% dedicated asking tough questions, challenging the financial pro forma, and critiquing the business plan made this one of the best competitions,” said Kiley Summers who won 2nd place. “Our biggest takeaway from the BPC was developing 3 year financial pro forma and solidifying our business model to include an investment analysis.”
The business plan competition organizers include nonprofit Newspring president Robert Westheimer, HCC Northwest College President Zach Hodges, business consultant and lead trainer Jack Barry and Sandra Louvier, director of HCC’s Center for Entrepreneurship.
Area businesses like LiftFund and Wallis State Bank made the event possible as major sponsors.
“Everyone has a dream to be an entrepreneur and the business plan competition provides the platform for the individuals to make their dream come true,” said Nasr Khan, executive vice president, Wallis State Bank and sponsor. Wallis State Bank is a top SBA Lender in the Houston District and we are committed in supporting the emerging business community.”
The Memorial Management District is proud to have HCC’s Spring Branch Campus in the district.
Celebrate Memorial Day Weekend with the Summer Tribute Concert Series in the plaza*! It’s beginning to sound a lot like summer at CITYCENTRE as the district’s entertainment calendar gets into full swing. Memorial Day weekend gets a special spotlight with four nights of music to kick off, celebrate and send off the holiday celebration. It’s not just a tribute to the country, but a tribute to some of the great bands that have shaped it. The Summer Tribute Concert Series is presented in partnership with The Memorial Buzz.
Friday, May 26 from 7 - 10 PM: Nightbird (Fleetwood Mac/Stevie Nicks Tribute Band)
Saturday, May 27 from 7 - 10 PM: ZZ Roxx (ZZ Top Tribute Band)
Sunday, May 28 from 7 - 10 PM: Heart to Heart (Inspirational)
Monday, May 29 from 4 - 7 PM: Almost Endless Summer (Beach Boys Tribute Band)
As a courtesy, no outside food or beverages are allowed. Our restaurants offer delicious menu items that can also conveniently be taken to-go.
*Weather permitting.
School’s out and METRO wants to give students FREE RIDES to where the fun is – ALL SUMMER LONG!
The new METRO Student Summer of Fun Pass offers K-12 students the opportunity to travel anywhere METRO goes, any time, all day FREE! The Summer of Fun pass is a unique fare card offering students FREE rides on all METRO light-rail, local bus and Park & Ride service from June 1, through Sept. 1, 2017. Plus, you can keep the card and use it like a Student METRO Q® Fare Card once school starts.
Apply for your card in 1 of 3 ways:
1. Go to RideMETRO.org and click the Summer of Fun link to apply.
2. Call 713-635-4000 to request mail-in applications.
3. Visit a METRO RideStore to apply. (1900 Main St. or 1001 Travis St)
Your card must be registered for activation.
Based on the popular comic strip and adapted from the Tony Award-winning Best Musical, with a beloved book and score by Tony Award-winners, Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin, Annie KIDS features everyone’s favorite little redhead in her very first adventure. With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone's hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City. Annie is determined to find the parents who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of an orphanage run by the cruel Miss Hannigan. Annie eventually foils Miss Hannigan's evil machinations, finding a new home and family in billionaire, Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary, Grace Farrell, and a lovable mutt named Sandy.
Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus presents Parachute Play Time with Gymboree Play & Music on Friday, May 19 from 10 AM – 12 PM for a morning of toddler-friendly fun. Young children are encouraged to learn and develop as they play movement games, participate in song and dance, and experience the famous 20-foot rainbow parachute.