Houston’s Priceless Buffalo Bayou Greenway Gets a Boost From a Powerful New Group
This Rare Fundraiser at the City's Hottest New Mexican Restaurant is For the Trees
BY Shelby Hodge // 05.20.22
Monica Radoff, Claudia Hoz de Vila at the Buffalo Bayou Partnership Cocktails in Bloom fundraiser at Flora (Photo by Lawrence Elizabeth Knox)
With Buffalo Bayou Park in its full verdant glory, a congenial cast of supporters swanned into Flora (formerly The Dunlavy) on a recent evening, dubbed “Cocktails in Bloom,” to learn about a spanking new support group — Buffalo Bayou Partnership Patrons. The donor group was the brainchild of Isabel David, Judy Nyquist and Leigh Smith.
As David explains to PaperCity, even though she and husband Danny David have long been involved in the Hermann Park Conservancy, her love of the Buffalo Bayou greenway with its lavish canopy of trees and the fact that she and their three children can walk to the park inspired her to share the green love.
Smith, who with her husband Reggie Smith, is poised to move from their River Oaks home to The Residences at the Allen was enthused at the prospect of adding Buffalo Bayou Park, which their new aerie will overlook, to their carte of philanthropies.
Nyquist in addition to her widely applauded support of the arts across a broad spectrum has served on boards and committees of the Buffalo Bayou Partnership as well as that of the Hermann Park Conservancy and Discovery Green. Her bonafides in the love of parks and green spaces are well established.
The community savvy trio joined forces to spearhead the BBT Patrons that was established to promote a deeper engagement with the partnership’s mission of creating a dynamic network of parks and trails and preserving the natural beauty of the area.
For those who have yet to sample the new take on Mexican cuisine offered at Flora, this was the perfect opportunity for indulging in the menu of cocktails and tasting the lauded “clean” small town Mexico treats.
Elizabeth Anthony
Grant Cooper and Marc Cantu of Big Vibe Group, the force behind Flora, joined the festive cocktail event that saw close to 200 supporters fill the chandelier-laced dining room and spill over onto the patio where a mariachi duo entertained. Cantu tells PaperCity that this is the only special event that Flora will host, despite the fact that the team has received numerous requests for events — in particular weddings.
The full-time restaurant will not be used as an event space. He added that Big Vibe Group hosted this event as a thank you to Buffalo Bayou Partnership for the restaurant’s remarkable perch above the bayou.
PC Seen: Jennifer and Tadd Tellepsen, Clayton and Shel Erikson, Lisa Helfman, Richard Dawson, Stephanie and Frank Tsuru, Fady Armanious and Bill Baldwin, Cynthia Wolff, Beth Wolff, Corey Devine, the Rev. Harvey Clemons Jr., Alisha Nathoo, Marcos Gemoets, Carey Kirkpatrick, Megan Ryan, Alex de Aguiar, Lee Haverman and BBP president Anne Olson.
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