Houston, we have our man of the year! Our 2019 man of the year is none other than the Mayor of Houston, Sylvester Turner!
This year, the HFR team worked diligently at narrowing down our choices for the Man of the Year and narrowed down the list to several remarkable men, who were each deserving of holding the title in different ways.
It is important to note that while he does extensive work and philanthropy that positively influences the 4th (almost 3rd) largest city in America, no matter how busy he is, Mayor Turner is a champion and advocate for the health of Houstonians- which is why he deserves to be HFR’s 2019 Man of the Year!
Here are some of his impressive programs and accomplishments:
- Mayor Sylvester Turner teamed up with James Harden for his annual JH-Town weekend to give out bicycles and backpacks to 100 Houston 5th Ward children.
More than 100 neighborhood children received backpacks and bicycles. pic.twitter.com/y57sRSA7Xh
— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) August 24, 2019
- He signed off on building 700 miles of on-street bike lanes and 450 miles off-street trails across Houston.
- The Mayor is implementing the $220 million Bayou Greenways 2020 project, which aims to connect 150 miles of hike-and-bike trails to parks and neighborhoods across the city’s nine major bayous.
- Turner stands with his community by taking part in the MomsDemand and Students Demand Action Rally in which they expressed that enough is enough when it comes to gun violence.
Mayor @SylvesterTurner @JudgeHidalgo and @RepAlGreen thank “Students Demand Action” members Ana and Milan. They did an outstanding job speaking about the concerns of students who want solutions to protect their classmates, teachers and loved ones from gun violence.#MomsDemand pic.twitter.com/VTSvqfUKuu
— Mary Benton (@IAmMaryBenton) August 19, 2019
- Mayor Turner makes it a priority to uplift and direct juveniles in the right direction.
- The Fifth Ward Juvenile Justice program aims to keep students out of jail and instead provide them with mentorship and community service opportunities.
- He appointed Samir Becic as the official “Fitness Czar” of Houston in an effort to combat its reputation as one of the fattest cities in America and turn it into one of the fittest cities!
- Mayor Turner co-founded the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund, which collects money for non-profit organizations providing direct, long-term relief to victims of the flooding.
- Mayor Turner launched TurnAroundHouston! which is an initiative that addresses the challenges faced with unemployment.
- The program helps position unemployed Houston residents for job opportunities by attending workshops focused on
job training, resume building, and counseling/intervention. - “We want to eliminate the barriers to employment by offering a road map to a brighter future.” -Mayor Sylvester Turner
- The program helps position unemployed Houston residents for job opportunities by attending workshops focused on
- Mayor Turner joined Health Fitness Revolution’s #PushUpsEverywhere campaign
- The challenge consists of filming yourself or someone doing 10 push-ups, uploading to Facebook, Twitter or Youtube, challenging two of your friends and tagging #PushUpsEverywhere.
- Mayor Turner continues the work of
former city of Houston Mayor Annise Parker andher Go Healthy Houston initiative.- Go Healthy Houston is designed to reduce obesity and increase healthy eating and exercise. The initiative promotes programs, policies, and projects designed to reduce food deserts, promotes the availability of locally-grown foods, and promotes physical activity opportunities.
- His Complete Communities effort, launched in 2017, was founded on community engagement to create accessibility of quality services and amenities for underserved neighborhoods.
- He took action to strengthen the security of Houston’s youth by hiring a proven crime
– fighter—Police Chief Art Acevedo—and giving him the resources he needs to ensure Houston is safe. - Mayor Turner and Chief Acevedo believe in preventative methods for fighting crime; the youth programs offered by Chief Acevedo and the Houston Police Department reach out to young Houstonians in a positive way and strengthen the Houston community as a whole.
- From May 2018 to May 2019, he has helped add nearly 80,000 jobs on the market for unemployed residents.
- Houston’s unemployment rate is now at 3.2% — the lowest unemployment rate in Houston since 1981.
Mayor Sylvester Turner has made it very clear that he continues to stand by his word that “Houston is strong, resilient and sustainable. We are building one complete city, and when we work together, Houston, we win!“ He has been successful in holding a complex and diverse city together in some of the worst possible times. More importantly, he understands that everyone’s voice MUST be heard; therefore, he lifts every voice in Houston so that the city can do great things.
