Thank You

The 8th Annual Women of Substance Luncheon

Wednesday, November 6, 2024

The Post Oak Hotel at Uptown Houston

11:00 AM Champagne Raffle and Mixer

11:45 AM Luncheon and Presentation of Honorees

2024 Women of Substance

2024 Lifetime of Substance Honoree

~ Trini Mendenhall Royalty ~

2024 Spirit of Substance Honoree

~ Jacqueline W. Bostic ~

2024 Youth of Substance Honoree

~ Bella Chramosta ~

2024 Women of Substance

Lara Bell ~ Chree Boydstun ~ The Honorable Theresa Chang ~ Tena Faust

Melanie Lawson ~ Tama Lundquist ~ Marian McClendon ~ Sneha Merchant

Edna Meyer-Nelson ~ Leila Perrin ~ Heidi Rockecharlie ~ Jerre Williams

2024 Honorary Chairs

Sippi Khurana, MD and Amy Pierce

2024 Luncheon Co-Chairs

April McGee and Paula Sutton

Congratulations to the 2024 Woman of Substance Honorees!!!!  This special recognition honors women who have impacted Houston with their tireless efforts to strengthen our community.   This year, we are once again fortunate to have exceptional event Chairs!  April McGee and Paula Sutton are both former Women of Substance and with their combined efforts, we are certain this will be a banner year for our fabulous honorees as well as our beneficiary, Houston reVision! April and Paula have been mainstays in the success of multiple charities and continue to make a huge impact in the lives of so many!

 

Named after the global publishing phenomenon of Barbara Taylor Bradford’s novel, A Woman of Substance, this event was created by Paul-David Van Atta in 2017 and has honored more than 90 dynamic women who have positively impacted the city of Houston through their giving nature of volunteerism and philanthropy.  Each year, 12 women are recognized as Women of Substance.  Additionally, we recognize a Lifetime of Substance and Spirit of Substance Honoree.  In 2023, we added the Youth of Substance Category to celebrate the spirit of giving and caring that exists among the youth of Houston. Shaan Khurana was celebrated for his tremendous heart and also performed at the luncheon moving guests to tears.  The commitment of this event is to celebrate the diversity and exquisite culture of volunteerism that sets Houston apart from anywhere else in the country!  Houston is the most philanthropic city in the United States!

 

Women of Substance was designed to benefit multiple charitable organizations around the city and we are so pleased to continue our support of Houston reVision for the second year.  The introduction of this amazing organization yielded great results, garnering more than $500,000 in praise and support for the work they do for Houston’s most vulnerable youth. 

reVision works to break the cycle of isolation among the most profoundly disconnected youth, most of whom are caught up in the juvenile justice system.

By connecting one kid at a time to caring adults, positive peers and a program that works, reVision offers disconnected youth the opportunity to “revision” hopeful pathways.

Everyone is transformed in this work: kids, mentors, and communities.

Champagne Raffle & Live Auction Items

2024 Women of Substance Sponsors

$25,000.00 “Unexpected Blessings”

Sippi Khurana, MD & Amy Pierce

Trini Mendenhall-Royalty

$15,000.00 “Power of a Woman”

April and Wells McGee

Edna Meyer-Nelson | Richland Investments, Inc.

$10,000.00 “Voice of the Heart”

Donae and Rob Chramosta

Dr. Farrell and Tama Lundquist Fund From Greater Houston Community Foundation

Legacy Community Health Services, Inc | Chree Boydston

Melanie Lawson

Sneha and Nick Merchant

The Honorable Theresa Chang and Peter Chang, MD

Marian and Bruce McClendon, MD

$5,000.00 “To Be The Best”

David Batagower, Broker, Compass Realty

Lara Bell | SWOON Media

Jana & Richard Fant | In honor of April McGee

Gregg Harrison | Gregg Harrison Law Firm, PLLC

Houston Modern Luxury | Sara Leftwich

Flo McGee

SAKS 5th Avenue | Heidi Turney

Leila Perrin

Heidi Rockecharlie

Regina Rogers

Paula Sutton

Jerre Williams

reVision Boardmember Barry Goldware

“Just Rewards”

Mary Ann Baxter

Kathy Bennett

Diane Watson Cain

Rose Chen

Rose Cullen

Joan Dunlap

Elsie Eckert

Jacqueline Eubank

Conceicao Feghali

Edward Finger

Mary Fusillo

Diane Gendel

Betty Hrncir

Blanca Jolly

Dana Kervin

Deborah Laws

Denise Leisten

“Just Rewards”

Jacqueline Bostic McElroy

Jody Merritt

Renee Morris for 5

Tammy Norman

Leslie Nossaman

Kirk M. Kveton and Daniel Irion

Bruce Padilla

Diane Pain

Karen Payne

Kathi Rovere

Elizabeth Stein

Dr. Susan Snider Osterberg

Sonia Stevenson

Jenny Todd for 2

David Thomas for 2

Betty Tutor

Astrid Van Dyke

Rini Ziegler

ENTERTAINMENT UNDERWRITERS

Leila Perrin

Heidi Rockecharlie

Jerre Williams

VALET UNDERWRITERS

David Batagower, Broker, Compass Realty

Gregg Harrison | Gregg Harrison Law Firm, PLLC

DONATIONS

Stacey Lindseth

in honor of April McGee, Sippi Khurana, MD, Amy Pierce, Sneha Merchant and Bella Chramosta

Tena Lundquist-Faust

Sidney Faust

in honor of Tena Lundquist-Faust

Betty Tutor

in honor of Heidi Rochecharlie, Lara Bell, Tena Faust Tama Lunduist, Leila Perrin, Jerre Williams & Paul David

2023 Women of Substance Sponsors

$50,000.00 “A Woman of Substance”

The Mach Family

$25,000.00 “Unexpected Blessings”

Sippi & Ajay Khurana

$15,000.00 “Power of a Woman”

Amy & Rob Pierce

Dylan & Jordan Seff

Stephanie Tsuru

$10,000.00 “Voice of the Heart”

Leisa Holland-Nelson Bowman

Laura & Ned Davenport

Memorial Hermann

April & Wells McGee

Susan D. Sarofim

Paula Sutton & Bill Gross

Rini & Edward Ziegler

$5,000.00 “To Be The Best”

The Alkek & Williams Foundation

Leisa Holland-Nelson Bowman

Leisa Holland-Nelson Bowman #2

The Brown Family Charitable Fund

Friends of Laura Davenport

Wendy & Alistair Dawson

Laura Escalona

Debbie & Rudy Festari

Flo McGee

Paula Sutton

Paula Sutton #2

Aimee Baggett Snoots

Regina Rogers

The Elizabeth & Alan Stein Family

Friends of Elizabeth Stein

Vicki Grams

$5,000.00 “To Be The Best”

Friends of Debbie Festari

Friends of Debbie Festari #2

Lauren Varnado

Goldware Family Charitable Fund

Katherine & Ray Givens

Houston Charitable Fund

Eileen & Kase Lawal

Friends of Eileen Lawal

Penny & Paul Loyd

Corporate Sponsorships

Gittings | Andrew Cordes

Saks 5th Avenue

Modern Luxury Houston

David Peck Designer Gowns

The Vintage Contessa

Youth of Substance Honoree Shaan Khurana

reVision Emergency Housing $20,000.00 Sponsors: Sippi & Ajay Khurana, Dylan & Jordan Seff, Melissa Juneau

reVision Girls Soccer Team $10,000.00 Sponsors: Andrea Bryant, Susan Boggio, Bobbi Nau

If you would like to submit a donation greater than the sponsorship amount, you may select the last option, usually reserved for those who cannot attend. This will allow you to enter any dollar amount, and then you can type in your sponsorship level and explain the additional amount in the comment section.

reVision Facts

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    1. reVision is a community of kinship, connecting caring adult volunteers, case managers, mental health professionals, and faith communities with disconnected youth.

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    2. reVision is situated in the Gulfton neighborhood of Houston, which is the most densely populated area in Texas. It is also home to the highest number of refugees and immigrants compared to other places in the United States.

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    3. There is no “graduation” or “aging out” from reVision–once you’re part of reVision, you are always part of reVision as long as you want to be. Youth and young adults opt in and are never forced to be part of our community.

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    4. Our staff of 20 includes 13 former clients who benefitted from the program when they were younger.

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    5. reVision works throughout the school-to-prison pipeline, from middle schools to the juvenile detention centers to the adult prison system.

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    6. Our newest work includes providing housing for unstably housed youth between the ages of 16 and 24.

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    7. Referrals to our program come from partner agencies–Houston ISD, Harris County Juvenile Probation Department, Texas Juvenile Justice Department, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, and others in the community.

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    8. reVision has a Girl Scout troop that meets regularly.

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    9. Charles Rotramel, our CEO, has over 33 years of experience working with disconnected youth and our partners in Harris County.

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    10. As the primary partner of Harris County Juvenile Probation, we have contributed to the steep decline of youth incarcerated in Harris County since the inception of reVision in 2011.

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    11. Youth as young as ten can be part of our community and often choose to be, especially those coming from refugee backgrounds living nearby.

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    12. To provide a positive activity for our youth, reVision has four soccer teams–one in the UPSL for the over-18s and three for the school-aged young men. Two of those teams won State Championships in US Youth Soccer in 2023. reVision is developing a girls’ soccer team now.

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    13. reVision works with over 1100 youths annually, utilizing as many as 450 volunteers.escription goes here

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    14. During COVID, when we could not gather, our staff made well-checks with hot meals for the whole household six days a week until school resumed.

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    15. All of our youths are food insecure, and many are academically behind by two or more school years. All have experienced trauma in their lives.

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    16. On the First Friday of every month, we provide a youth group experience to young men aged 15-17 in the adult prison system.