Gingerbread Project

How has this idea enhanced your club's operation, etc.?

The Club hosts events to raise money for the Child Life Program at MD Anderson Children's Cancer Hospital, including the October Fitness Challenge, Elves on the Run, the Gingerbread Workshop, the Gingerbread Mix & Mingle, and Gingerbread Liveball. These events bring Members and families together in support of a great cause and create lasting traditions within our community.

How was this idea implemented, and what have been the club members' reactions?

Each holiday season since 2008, HRC's Chief Operating Officer, Thomas Preuml, CCM, CCE, bakes and builds a gingerbread house and is joined by chefs from several prominent private clubs in Houston to deliver houses of their own, along with monetary contributions and donated toys, to the young patients at MD Anderson. Support from Members grows each year, and events hosted to benefit the Gingerbread Project have become some of the Club's highest-attended events. This year, the fundraiser reached new heights, achieving $106,476.76 in donations, amounting to a total of over $800,000 raised since 2008.