Dish-Houston

Hank Rush, Star of Hope President and CEO, has announced that the Mission’s SUMMER OF HOPE initiative continues with a “Hot Weather Alert” because of the extreme heat. The Mission’s HOPE-IN-ACTION van departed the Men’s Center at 8:45 AM this morning loaded with bottled water. Multiple times a week the outreach van visits areas frequented by homeless men and women, distributing water and encouraging the street homeless to seek shelter at the Star of Hope.

Star of Hope has received 38.000 bottles of water donated by the I Am Waters Foundation. I Am Waters foundation was created by Houstonian Elena Davis to enrich the lives of America’s homeless by providing a continuous source of fresh, clean bottled water, delivered with a daily, inspirational message of hope, love and a sense of belonging to the greater community. Star of Hope expects to distribute about 1,500 bottles of water a week to shelter clients and street homeless.

With daytime temperatures predicted to surpass 100 degrees this weekend, the downtown Men’s Development Center and the Women and Family Emergency Shelter, both over capacity with record numbers, are encouraging all resident guests to stay inside. The two shelters have set up areas offering cold water to anyone requesting it.

In addition, the Mission has put out a call for financial assistance.

“Traditionally the summer time is when our population increases and our donations decrease. We can use some immediate help to insure that this will be a SUMMER OF HOPE for Houston’s suffering homeless,” said Rush.

Typically, Star of Hope, a faith based mission, offers food, shelter, education, spiritual direction and structured recovery programs to about 1,150 homeless men, women, and children each day. 

Summer is usually a time of being carefree, relaxed, taking vacations, not having a care in the world. That is not reality for a lot of people. Homelessness is still a very real problem in Summer, especially in Houston. There are news stories everywhere how Houston is booming with jobs so people will come down with their families to look for work and end up in the shelter because the jobs aren't the right ones or have been filled because there are hundreds applying for the same one job. The kids are out of school so they are eating more meals at the shelter daily than during the school year.

At the Star of Hope's Women and Family Center one evening this week there were 106 women and children sleeping on pallets on the floor because the 296 beds have been filled for 3 years. Yes, the homeless shelter has been over capacity for over 3 years.
When these folks wake up they don't have anything. That is where you come in.

Help make this a Summer of Hope for those who need just a little hope. Start them off right with a toothbrush, soap, a hair brush, toothpaste. All of these things we take for granted they don't have everyday.

You can help, and it doesn't take much. A small financial donation, a food donation or a goods donation goes a very long way in the world of someone who doesn't have anything. Can you imagine not even having a toothbrush?

Give Hope today...CLICK HERE to make a positive difference in someone's life.

Well done, Discovery! Not only is it the greenest park in town but it consintues to do the right thing by the environment including cancelling parties for the good of Houston's ecology! See...it's really isn't about the all mighty dollar, DISHIES! You really can just do good!!

Here's the DISH: Discovery Green is increasing its water conservation efforts due to the extreme drought conditions in Houston. The park will close its Gateway Fountain on Monday through Friday beginning August 22 and open for weekends ONLY from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. In addition, the Inaugural Discovery Green Adult Swim Fundraiser presented by eVgo scheduled for August 26 has been cancelled. Ticketholders will receive a full refund. The small fundraising event was scheduled to be held in the Gateway Fountain on Friday, August 26, with proceeds benefitting the free programming at the park. 

“While we are disappointed that current weather conditions have forced the cancellation of Adult Swim, as a leader in conservation and clean energy, eVgo commends the City of Houston and Discovery Green in their efforts to encourage water conservation during this drought,” said Arun Banskota, president of eVgo.

Conservation – both energy and water – was a pivotal aspect of the design of Discovery Green, which is LEED certified at the Gold Level. The Gateway Fountain is highly efficient, recycling filtered water from an underground reservoir source. However, a small amount of water is lost to evaporation and wind. Houston’s recent extreme high temperatures increase the amount of water lost. To conserve water with minimal impact, the fountain will close on weekdays once HISD begins classes on August 22. 

“The fountains at Discovery Green are hands down the most popular attraction at the park, but like so many others, we are adapting to the current weather conditions,” said Discovery Green President Barry Mandel said. “With the revised weekend hours we hope to continue to be the cool spot for families and children.”

While adhering to the City’s restrictions, Discovery Green reduced its watering of the park’s landscape so that minimal amounts of water are used. Watering occurs on the days designated by the City of Houston. TreeGators, 20-gallon water sources are rotated throughout the park, attached to trees to release water with the greatest efficiency over a five to nine hour period. Finally, the Mist Tree, located on the Sarofim Picnic Lawn, and the Riley Fountain, located in the Wortham Gardens, are currently turned off and will remain so as long as the city’s water conservation measures are in effect.

Discovery Green will continue to monitor weather conditions and the status of the City of Houston’s water restrictions and adapt operations accordingly.