Bicycle Ball Shakes Up Houston’s Social Scene: When New Wheels Drive Kids to do Better in School

What: 13th Annual CYCLE “Bicycle Ball”

Where: Hyatt Regency Downtown

PC Moment: While the city has been cheering on the buzz worthy Houston Astros, Houstonians cheered on another major organization, Changing Young Children’s Lives through Education (CYCLE) at the non-profit’s 13th annual gala.

Friends, family, and supporters poured in for CYCLE’s “Bicycle Ball” to benefit the organization’s children’s literacy program. Hosted by CYCLE’s board members and co-chairs Leo Hamel, Louise and Gary Moss and María Quiñones, guests flaunted their best black tie or baseball chic attire (in support of our ‘Stros, of course) and devoured delectable dishes of pulled pork and brisket cheesesteaks, smoked chicken in cognac cream, tenderloin tips in Merlot glaze and Yukon Gold potatoes rubbed in olive oil and sea salt. Dr. Rolando Trevino, HISD assistant superintendent, acted as the night’s keynote speaker.

Fans attending the festivities didn’t miss a beat, simultaneously on the dance floor or with the baseball game. The DJ mixed and spun tunes while the America League Championship Series duel between the Houston Astros and the Boston Red Sox played on flat screens around the event space. With a team win on the diamond in Game 1, the evening’s excitement continued with live and silent auction bidding wars for memorable items, such as Houston Astros All-Star jerseys signed by A.J. Hinch, Charlie Morton and Gerrit Cole; a trip to New York including flights, hotel, dinner and a Broadway show; and tickets to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo along with a firetruck entry.

Guests also had the opportunity to donate $50 to buy bicycles for students working hard to improve their literacy.

The organization celebrated a monumental win raising well over $350,000 for children’s education, as well as providing students with new bicycles as a reward for achieving better academic performance in the classroom.

Who: Tracy and Harry Faulkner, Blair Chestnut, Curry Glassell, Carson Underwood, Ashley Olmsted, Rebecca Roberts, Pam and John Pare, Angel and Nick Anderson, Dena and Chris Winkler, Marsha and Michael Felman, and Kathy and Paul Simpson.