Houston’s Most Fashionable Women Show Off Their Hats in the Park — A $550,000 Sign Of Spring Hitting Full Bloom

A Bayou City Treasure Gets a Major Boost

BY Shelby Hodge // 03.31.25

Save Article

Mariana Torre, Monica Radoff, Jen Kavoussi at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Morgan Neal, Skye Chao, Ashton Verrengia, Chiara Casiraghi Brody, and Jessica Ludwig Bertuccio at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Brigitte Kalai, Heather Almond, Kathy Leigh, Cheryl Byington at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Roslyn Bazzelle Mitchell, Kaitlyn Scheurich at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Phoebe Tudor, Cynthia Petrello at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Susie & Sanford Criner at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Carrin Patman, Franci Neely at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

A beautiful chapeau at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Shelby Hodge)

One of many fabulous chapeaux at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Shelby Hodge)

Kaleta Blaffer Johnson, Christy Lynn Lee at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy.

Fady Armanious at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy.

Laurie Krohn at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Shelby Hodge)

Bethany Buchanan at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Shelby Hodge)

Illa Gaunt, Natalie Steen at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Shafik Rifaat, Shelby Hodge at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Courtesy photo)

Tara Martin at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy.

An interesting chapeau at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Shelby Hodge)

Amir Taghi, Shelby Hodge at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Courtesy photo)

Lunching ladies at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

Erin Kaplan, Elizabeth Colombowala, Maria Lowrey at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Shelby Hodge)

Hermann Park Conservancy record breaking 'Hats in the Park' luncheon chairs Carolyn Sabat, Brooke Bentley Gunst, Holly Radom. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

Honorees Katie Arnoldy, Brittany Sakowitz Kushner at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Board chair Roslyn Bazzelle Mitchell at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

Rebecca Mark-Jusbasche, Cara Lambright at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Isabel David, Brooke Bentley Gunst, Holly Radom, Carolyn Sabat, Kristy Bradshaw at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Lauren Paine, Stephanie Tsuru at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Amanda Boffone, Camille Connelly at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy

Charlotte Calloway, City Council member Martha Castex Tatum at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

Emily Holden, Holly Alvis at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Kelley Lubanko, Shawn Stephens at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

Denise Monteleone, Jana Arnoldy, Fady Armanious at the Hermann Park Conservancy's Hats in the Park luncheon.

Houston Parks & Recreation Department director Kenneth Allen, City Council member Carolyn Evans Shabbaz at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

Helga Rougeau, Isabel David, Kristen Berger at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Katherine Whaley, Kathryn Boeker at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy

Dina McMearn, Sharon-Marie Hogge at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy

Laura Sweeney, Brittany Sakowitz Kushner, Lexi Sakowitz Marek at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Natalie Synnott, Blair Loocke, Anooshea Taghdisi, Nicole Katz at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Katherine Whaley, Kathryn Boeker at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Jenny Antill)

Erin Kaplan, Elizabeth Colombowala, Maria Lowrey at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Shelby Hodge)

Houston Parks & Recreation Department director Kenneth Allen, City Council member Carolyn Evans Shabbaz at the 'Hats in the Park' luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

So many fabulous hats. So many divine frocks. And so much money raised for the care and improvement of Houston’s beloved Hermann Park. It was a record breaking Hats in the Park luncheon when 590 well-heeled ladies and a sprinkling of gents swanned into the party tent on the formal lawn of the McGovern Centennial Gardens and raised $550,000.

Hermann Park Conservancy‘s fundraising event is one, if not The, most colorful clutch of the season with chapeaux setting the pace for the fashionable tableau, all played out against the backdrop of the park’s spring flowers. Applause, applause for chairs Brooke Bentley Gunst, Holly Radom and Carolyn Sabat.

Morgan Neal, Skye Chao, Ashton Verrengia, Chiara Casiraghi Brody, and Jessica Ludwig Bertuccio at the ‘Hats in the Park’ luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy.

Double congratulations are probably due to honorees Katie Arnoldy and Brittany Sakowitz Kushner not only for their dedication to Hermann Park, but also for their inspired hat designs — kites in motion amid a flurry of clouds. In addition to other park support, the duo chaired the annual Kite Festival which is the conservancy’s beloved and largest community event.

“When you step into Hermann Park, it is quintessentially Houston. There is simply no place like it,”Arnoldy told the gathering as all lunched on yummy food from City Kitchen.

HPC Board Chair Roslyn Bazzelle Mitchell — Board chair Roslyn Bazzelle Mitchell at the ‘Hats in the Park’ luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

Kudos to conservancy board chair Roslyn Bazzelle Mitchell, who joined the team in assuring the record breaking fundraiser.

“Your presence here today speaks volumes. It shows that you not only love this park but that you also understand the responsibility we all share in preserving it for future generations,” Bazzelle Mitchell says. “Thanks to your generous support, we are shaping Hermann Park’s future with projects like the amazing Commons and continued enhancements throughout the park.”

Elizabeth Anthony

Swipe

Kelley Lubanko and Shawn Stephens — Kelley Lubanko, Shawn Stephens at the ‘Hats in the Park’ luncheon benefiting Hermann Park Conservancy. (Photo by Hung L. Truong)

This was the first major event for Cara Lambright, who joined the conservancy last summer as president and CEO.

PC Seen: Houston Parks and Recreation director Kenneth Allen, City Council members Martha Castex-Tatum and Carolyn Evans-Shabazz, Kristy Bradshaw, Susie and Sanford Criner, Phoebe Tudor, Cece and Mack Fowler, Julie Longoria Chen, Stacy Johnson, Sandy Godfrey, Kim Tutcher, Nicole Katz, Devorah Kreiger, Kelley Lubanko, Isabel David, and fashion designers Christy Lynn Lee and Amir Taghi.