Dear Supporters of The Heritage Society,

Thanks to your generosity, 2025 was one of our most impactful years yet. Your support allowed us to present four (4) major exhibits and three (3) pop‑up exhibitions, featuring visual art displays such as Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo History, Karankawa – An Enduring Culture of Texas, Coastal Cowboys, and UH Latino cARTographies.

A Year of Growth and Innovation

We delivered 96 activities to the public—a 14% increase from the previous year. Highlights included co‑hosting our first History Film Summer Camp, expanding partnerships with performing‑arts‑based educational organizations, and launching History on Tap, an engaging new lecture series led by university professors.  We also offered a Painted Churches bus trip to Schulenberg.

  • 33% of our programs were free,

  • 41% of our programs were HTX History,

  • 50% of our programs were heritage topics, and

  • 9% were women’s history/speaker topics.

Our tour sales increased by 13%, and we welcomed nearly 18,000 visitors across our museum, offsite programs, and Sam Houston Park. Through our field trip initiatives, we served 1,076 students and 281 chaperones, ensuring that history continues to inspire the next generation.  We added a staff member to accommodate the tour demand. 

As far as specialty tours go, we hosted the largest “Annual Candlelight Tour” we’ve had in a decade with the largest Holiday Heritage Market. Our “From Plantation to Emancipation Tours” were sold out in June in celebration of Juneteenth. We also started training on a new Tour called Texas Governance and Industries that was written by a second generation THS docent. It launches in March 2026 in celebration of Texas History Month.

Our facility rentals increased by 40%, and I worked with 24 Mayor’s Office of Special Events in Sam Houston Park. We also hosted our 5th annual Valentine’s Day Express Weddings, an affordable and less stressful way to say, “I Do!”

Our commitment to community connection reached new heights. We offered 21 Community Outreach Programs—a remarkable 133% increase.

We showed our community support by attending 23 partner events across the city boosting community relations. We served our fifth year on the board of Juneteenth Houston and Dia de los Muertos. It was also our first year serving on the board of the Women’s International Festival in Midtown.

In 2025, we welcomed a new Collections Registrar, whose scholarly expertise is helping us preserve and interpret the treasured objects that tell Houston’s story. We also hosted two (2) successful book sales to retire our library collection and place historic volumes into the hands of collectors, educators, and history enthusiasts throughout the region.

Our volunteers—excluding board members—contributed 4,351 hours, reflecting a meaningful increase in community engagement and service. One past board president, Minnette Boesel, was honored with the George Christian Outstanding Volunteer of the Year Award at the Texas Historical Commission in Austin.

The Heritage Society celebrated their 70th Platinum Anniversary on February 21st with a Jubilee that celebrated the first Gala chairs from 1966, Susan Baker and Isla Reckling. Paige and Bob Martin were gala chairs, and the event was held at the Junior League with an exciting auction, non-stop musical entertainment, and a champagne raffle for Tenenbaum gift certificates. The highlight of the evening was a short video with Susan and Isla reminiscing about the event in 1966.

The annual Houston Heritage Luncheon was held on June 3rd at the Historic Eldorado Ballroom. Ambassador Chase Untermeyer spoke of “The Houston Spirit”, a reflection on the early days of Houston which was modeled by a group of noted Houston leaders led by Jesse Jones in Suite 8F at the Lamar Hotel in downtown Houston. One of the special moments of the day was Ambassador Untermeyer being introduced by Pierce Bush, part of the Bush family, with which he spent much of his professional career. The other was honoring Past Docents of The Heritage Society including the Ambassador’s mother.

The SIP (See Interesting Places) event chaired by Bill Stubbs and Kurt Grether, began on October 8th with a curated Champagne and Caviar Experience hosted by Madame Zero and was followed by a tour of the home and a discussion by Stephen Fox, author of The Architecture of Birdsall P. Briscoe. This home, the Trone-Howe House, was the last residential commission by this legendary architect. The evening followed with a book signing by Fox with a wine and hors d’oeuvres reception.

Evening of Heritage, titled “Moving Forward by Looking Back” and chaired by Brian Teichman, was held on November 5th at the Forest Club. The evening began with a presentation by author Robert T. Sakowitz of his book, More Than a Store – Three Decades of Tumultuous Changes 1960-1990: A Series of Vignettes and a teaser of his upcoming book, Ultimate Gifts in the Golden Age of Catalogues.

We were excited to receive a grant from Houston Arts Alliance, the largest in more than a decade to support our programs, a generous grant from the John P. McGovern which supports our fundraisers, and several grants that support our exhibits from the Summerlee, the R. E. (Bob) Smith, and the Albert and Ethel Herzstein Foundations.

Membership decreased by 2% which is a lesser amount than some of our fellow museums with membership programs which are reporting 5% to 14% decreases.

Our Gift Shop hosted a pop-up shop during Bayou City Arts Festival, and it was our highest sales day. Our top sellers are our Heritage Society Cats and Historic Houses T-shirts that were illustrated by staff. Our multiple Texas-themed trays continue to be popular.

We have a cheerful new Finance Director who is applying her non-profit expertise to professionally manage our Accounting department.

Our visibility grew as well: The Heritage Society appeared in the media at least 123 times, a 32% improvement, accompanied by strong engagement across our social media platforms. Our Valentine’s Express Weddings, Juneteenth Tours, and Candlelight Tours received healthy TV, newspaper, radio and magazine coverage.

Board member Mister McKinney had four (4) one-hour TV show collaborations that featured us for Women’s History, Juneteenth, Hispanic Heritage Month, and Candlelight Tours.  Happy Birthday Houston’s 189th event featured the Texas State Library Archives Commission’s Texas 250 pop-up exhibit and live performance by the Shimmer Flute Choir covered on TV.  He also delivered 5 Facebook Live Shows for two seasons and filmed his weekly podcast from our historic locations giving us more exposure.

We launched America 250 events before other organizations in 2025 which resulted in the Today Show contacting us to film a New Year America 250 kick off. So, we ended the year with an exciting filming for the Today Show which was a performance collaboration with 7 nonprofits and chapters in front of the Kellum-Noble House…the oldest house in Houston on its original foundation. This was our second time being featured on a national TV program. Board member Jill Brooks led the kickoff and is leading the charge into 2026.

The continued support from our board, donors, foundations, companies, the City of Houston, and collaborators bolsters our mission to offer an educational place for locals and visitors. Thank you for fueling the passion for Houston History from the bottom of my heart. 

HOUniquely yours,

Alison Ayres Bell