- A Strong Foundation
- A Strong Foundation
- A Strong Foundation
Friday, March 27, 2026 | Omni Houston Hotel
Thank you so much to our sponsors and friends.
We loved having you at our 2026 luncheon. Please join us next year.
About the luncheon
This event was a celebration of the many ways our community comes together to ensure all Houston children and families have the opportunity to live healthy, full lives – regardless of their zip code or circumstance.
The programs supported by this luncheon – See to Succeed, Project Saving Smiles, My Brother’s Keeper, The Basics Houston, and Community Family Gardens- reach thousands of families each year with essential vision care, dental services, early childhood education, scholarship support, and access to healthy food.
These are not just programs – they are lifelines for families who simply want the best for their children.
Wendy Lewis Armstrong
Luncheon Co-Chair
Rodney E. Nathan
Luncheon Co-Chair
Champion of Health Honoree: Dr. Julie Boom
Dr. Julie Boom graduated with highest honors with a B.S. in Biology/Biological Studies from the University of Texas at Austin and completed her medical education at Baylor College of Medicine. Julie completed her internship and residency in pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Boom is a Professor of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and the Director of the Immunization Project at Texas Children’s Hospital. From 2002-2005, Dr. Boom served as the principal investigator for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s grant “Raising Immunizations Thru Education” (RITE), which analyzed the impact of an in-office, peer-based education program to improve immunization behaviors and immunization coverage levels. Dr. Boom led the development, implementation and expansion of the Houston-Harris County Immunization Registry from 2001-2008. In addition, she has led projects examining the time costs associated with obtaining immunization registry consent and the financial effects of an immunization reminder/recall initiative on the general pediatric practice. For the past 15 years, Dr. Boom has served as the Houston site principal investigator for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s New Vaccine Surveillance Network which conducts surveillance for pediatric acute gastrointestinal infection and acute respiratory illness. Additionally, CDC has supported Dr. Boom and her team at Texas Children’s Hospital to conduct surveillance for emerging diseases and pathogens such as acute flaccid myelitis, EV-D68, arboviruses, and SARS-CoV-2. Additionally, Dr Boom has investigated vaccine hesitancy among pregnant women and parents of infants. Dr. Boom is one of the primary authors of the booklet, “Vaccine Preventable Disease: The Forgotten Story”; to date, over 200,000 copies have been distributed. Julie is the mother of three children, ages 20, 26 and 30 years.
Keynote Speaker: Stephen L. Klineberg
Stephen Klineberg grew up in Westchester County, near New York City. He received a B.A. from Haverford College, an M.A. in Psychopathology from the University of Paris, and a Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Harvard. In 1972, after teaching at Princeton (1966-1972), he joined Rice University’s Sociology Department. The recipient of twelve major teaching awards during his years at Rice, he was also the founding-director of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research.
In 1982, he and his students initiated the annual Houston Area Survey, now in its 44th year of tracking systematically the shifts in economic outlooks, demographic patterns, experiences, attitudes, and beliefs among successive representative samples of Houston residents, during more than four decades of remarkable change.
No other metropolitan region in the country has been the focus of a long-term longitudinal study of this scope. Few cities more clearly exemplify the ongoing economic and demographic transformations that are profoundly refashioning the social and political landscape across America. Klineberg’s most recent book, entitled Prophetic City: Houston on the Cusp of a Changing America (Simon & Schuster, 2020), explores the national implications of the first 42 years of survey findings.
After 60 years of marriage, his wife, Peggy, passed away in November 2022. Both of their two children and all five of their grandchildren live in the Washington DC area. In April 2023, Steve officially retired from Rice, said a fond farewell to Houston, and moved into a retirement community in Alexandria VA, to be closer to his family and to begin a new chapter in his life.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
Champion for change
Beacon of Hope
Empowerment Advocate
Healthy Foundations
Heart of Community
Impact maker
Floral & Decor Sponsor
Specials thanks to Rogene Calvert & Sukey Fenoglio
To learn more about supporting the Houston Health Foundation, Contact Emily Pauley, Director of Development at emily.pauley@houstonhealthfoundation.org
