Recognizing Houston’s 2019 Annual Houston Humanitarian Award Honoree Wea Lee. Businessman Wea Lee, the owner of the International Trade Center in Chinatown, started the Southern News Group 35 years ago, creating a mechanism that in turn has aided in the success of many immigrants and positioned Houston as a city of opportunity and investment. Active in the community, he has served as the President of the International Press Club of Houston, Chairman of the International Management District, as well as a board member of the Houston Urban League and the Harris County Hospital District. He also hosts the annual Lunar New Year Festival. We salute you!

Recognizing Houston’s 2019 Annual Houston Humanitarian Award Honoree Gary Lynn. Gary Lynn was born with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. The doctors gave no hope that he would ever function at a normal level, but he has surpassed his limitations with many accolades and accomplishments along the way, including establish his on non-profit. The Gary P. Lynn foundation, which raises money for cerebral palsy research, has donated generously to both Texas Children’s Hospital, Cerebral Palsy International Foundation and the TIRR Memorial Herman robotics program. We salute you!

Recognizing Houston’s 2019 Annual Houston Humanitarian Award Honoree Tilman Fertitta. The Founder and CEO of Landry’s, Tilman Fertitta believes in the importance of giving back to the community and devotes a substantial amount of time to civic service and charitable organizations. He is currently Chairman of the Board for the Houston Police Foundation, Houston’s Children’s Charity and University of Houston Regents, sits on the Executive Committee of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and serves on the boards of the Texas Heart Institute and Greater Houston Partnership. The Tilman and Paige Fertitta Family Foundation supports police agencies and organizations involved with education, heart disease and children. Mr. Fertitta has also given generously to various health-related causes over the years, including the John P. McGovern Museum of Health and Medical Science, Friends of the Texas Medical Center Library, and Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, Inc.  We salute you!

Recognizing Houston’s 2019 Annual Houston Humanitarian Award Honoree Rudy Rasmus. Pastor Rudy Rasmus is a pastor, author, and a humanitarian with a passion for outreach to the world’s most challenge communities. His biggest attribute to Houston is serving 500 meals per day to the homeless in the Sanctuary of St. John and providing a 43-unit single room occupancy development designed to provide permanent living accommodations for formerly homeless women and men. The Temenos Community Development Corporations portfolio also includes an 80-unit Temenos ll Apartment community to meet the growing need for permanent supportive housing for the previously homeless inn Houston and the 15-unit temenos lll apartment project for the most vulnerable homeless individuals in the Houston community. Pastors Rudy and Juanita founded the Bread of Life, Inc. (a not for profit corporation) with Juanita in December of 1992 and began serving 500 meals per day to the homeless in the sanctuary at St. John’s. Years later the Bread of Life has changed the landscape of Downtown Houston providing an array of services to homeless men and women. The project also distributes over 14 tons of fresh produce weekly to hungry families. St. John’s is one of few faith communities in the U.S. providing HIV/AIDS testing to churchgoers on Sundays through the innovative “Get Tested Project.” For many years Pastor Rudy coordinated domestic and global anti-hunger initiatives in conjunction with Beyoncé’s concert tours and travels extensively developing and supporting programs around the world for people experiencing poverty. We salute you!

Recognizing Houston’s 2019 Carroll Oliver Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree Mayor Sylvester Turner. We salute you!