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Saturday, January 31, 2026 • Vol. 71 • No. 4
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From art to poetry, Houston celebrates 100 years of Black History Month By JUHI VARMA The Leader News Contributor
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Every February, the nation honors the rich history and contributions of African Americans. That legacy will be highlighted through art exhibitions, lectures, and poetry contests. Here’s a look at Black History Month events in and around the Heights.
The 2026 celebration is especially significant, marking 100 years since Black History Month began in 1926 as “Negro History Week.” The original week was chosen to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln on February 12 and Frederick Douglass on February 14, both dates long commemorated within Black communities.
Photo courtesy of The Heritage Society
Stories & Saddles: Black Cowboys
All are invited to attend the opening of the Black History Month panel discussion featuring former and current Black Cowboys. Featured panelists include University of Houston professor Demetrius Pearson; Larry
The Heritage Society leads tours of historic Houston sites significant to Black history, many preserved with historical markers.
See BLACK P. 2
DOUGH-MINATION!
Losing Sight, Finding Voice: Local woman transforms blindness into healing work By BETSY DENSON The Leader News Contributor
The Hallmark to expand luxury senior living campus in Houston
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Real Estate: HAR year-end local data by zip code
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Photo courtesy of SMO Digital
Lauren MacQueen and overall contest winner Christopher Dale smile and point to the cream cheese kolaches that earned them top honors at Hruska’s.
Heights woman claims victory at Hruska’s kolache eating contest
Coming to a Table Near You: Serving up love, sweets & game day treats
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Save the Date: See what’s happening in the neighborhood and around town
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By BETSY DENSON The Leader News Contributor Heights resident and avid foodie Lauren MacQueen has been a topranked female kolache eater since 2009. She waited 16 years to defend her title. “I thought as long as I don’t enter any more competitions, I can’t be beat,” she joked. But when Hruska’s Bakery in Ellinger, TX, announced a kolache-eating contest, MacQueen’s friends knew she had to enter. “I am a connoisseur of fine kolaches, and Hruska’s are the best,” she said. On Jan. 17, MacQueen was the first-place female eater, downing 13 cream cheese kolaches in 10 minutes to claim the $250 prize. Christopher Dale, 54, of League City, also known as @OldGuyEats on YouTube, was the overall winner with 17½ kolaches eaten. Third place went to Zach Pappert,
and Major League Eating brought in the pros: Joey Chestnut, Pat Bertoletti, Bob Shoudt, and Eater X, the top fourranked male eaters in the world at the time. MacQueen, who was the firstplace female then, too, credits former Houston Chronicle columnist Ken Hoffman, a longtime friend, with getting her into that first contest. “That’s basically my kind of thing,” she said. “Find something weird, and Lauren will do it.” It fits her personality. MacQueen is a special event planner who has spent her career in venue management, caPhoto courtesy of SMO Digital tering, sales, and event production for A brightly painted cowboy hat designates private gatherings, weddings, galas, Lauren MacQueen as the Kolache Queen. and corporate functions in Houston known as one half of The MEEF Twins, and beyond. Her tagline: “Don’t tempt me with a good time.” a fitness duo. The Hruska’s contest pitted six comMacQueen’s first contest was no petitors against each other - three from small-time affair. The 2009 Kolache Houston, three from the Hill Country. Factory competition was held during See KOLACHE P. 3 an Astros game at Minute Maid Park,
When Mary Kathryn LeMaster was handed a dark green folder with giant letters reading “LOW VISION” two days after being diagnosed legally blind five years ago, she made a decision that would reshape her life. “It felt so confining. It did not feel like a resource. It felt like every door was constantly being shut on me,” LeMaster said. “I just thought, this is not my story.” Today, the Candlelight Plaza resident refers to herself as a “legally blind visionary” and has channeled her experience into a poetry and meditation collection titled My Dark Garden: Poems and Meditations for Life During and After Diagnosis, released in September 2025. The book’s cover features a photo from a shoot LeMaster did with a friend just weeks after her diagnosis. “I had no idea how fast my vision was going to go, and I wanted something. I wanted to be able to see myself through pictures,” she said. LeMaster was first diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa at age 13. Doctors told her she would be blind by her thirties, based on her great aunt’s prognosis. “What no one ever told me was that blindness is a spectrum,” she said. “So I See LEMASTER P. 1
Submitted photo
Mary Kathryn LeMaster, a Candlelight Plaza resident and self-described “legally blind visionary,” has turned her vision-loss journey into writing, wellness work, and advocacy.
Heights Chef Shawn Gawle earns James Beard semifinalist nod in restaurant’s first year Pet of the Week: Meet adoptable Ralphie Girl – the chillest orange tabby in town!
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By BETSY DENSON The Leader News Contributor Shawn Gawle was feeding his daughter and getting his morning coffee when his phone started buzzing with congratulatory messages. The chef behind Camaraderie, a Heights restaurant that opened less than a year ago, had just been named a semifinalist for the 2026 James Beard Awards in the Best Chef: Texas category. “I guess I need to look at the
list,” Gawle recalled thinking. “It was a moment.” The James Beard Foundation announced its semifinalists on Jan. 21, marking four decades of one of the country’s most prestigious culinary recognitions. Houston earned 12 nominations overall, with eight in national categories and four in Best Chef: Texas. Three Heights restaurants made the list: Camaraderie, Jūn (also for Best Chef: Texas), and Agnes and Sherman (Best New Restaurant).
For Gawle, the recognition validates a philosophy he has been building over more than 25 years in kitchens across New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. Originally from Massachusetts, he worked for some of the country’s most demanding fine dining establishments before landing in Texas, first in Austin with McGuire Moorman Hospitality, then in Houston to help Photo by Arturo Olmos Chef Shawn Gawle opened Camaraderie in the open Goodnight Hospitality. See GAWLE P. 3
Heights in March 2025. Less than a year later, he’s a James Beard semifinalist.
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