Cristina Cave is the community relations manager for Baker-Ripley and she's full of advice to help people prepare their taxes for free. Baker-Ripley operates 11 Tax Centers in the Houston area, providing free tax preparation for individuals and families earning up to $58,000. Christina warns us about delays for certain refunds and how this sets the stage for fraudulent loan advance scams based on those refunds. She explains how to avoid those frauds and how Notario Fraud Prevention and Houston Volunteer Lawyers are also helping folks navigate our legal system.
Baker-Ripley offers so many services to their community starting with their helpful website: www.Freetaxcenters.org

Christine Holland is the CEO & executive director of Rebuilding Together Houston. They have been providing home repair services at no cost to senior citizens, people with disabilities and US Military veterans for over 35 years. They were therefore well prepared to help Houston recover from Hurricane Harvey and while government money isn't coming in yet, they were able to get to work immediately with the help of hefty donations from local corporations like AIG and Exxon Mobile. They need volunteers as well and you don't need any experience to lend a hand. Just go to their website: www.rebuildinghouston.org

Carleen Graham is the director of HGOco and Emily Wells is their programs manager and producer of Song of Houston. HGOco is the education-branch of the Houston Grand Opera and it produces shows for families. They are premiering a new child-friendly opera called "Monkey & Francine in the City of Tigers," and the performances are free on February 2 & 3. They will also be filming the pilot episode of a new Internet Video series called "Star-Cross'd" based on the most popular story published by The Moth podcast. And of course, there is the Houston Grand Opera's mainstage season which continues with "Elektra" by R. Strauss (through Feb 2) and "The Barber of Seville" by Rossini (through Feb 10).
Their website is www.HGOco.org. Check them out, they put on some of the best Operas in the world (and I’m not exaggerating one bit).

Oli Mohammed is the executive director of The Houston Furniture Bank. They are celebrating 25 years of service by being on the forefront of Houston's Hurricane Harvey recovery. To date, they have distributed over 8000 pieces of furniture to help families rebuild from the flood. They are working with Houston agencies who refer their clients to the Houston Furniture Bank. It's an ongoing effort in addition to their normal operations, which include their store and their mattress recycling programs. On January 25th, from 5:25PM to 8-25PM, they will celebrate their 25th anniversary. They will honor 25 companies who have helped in the success of The Furniture Bank.
Get involved: www.HoustonFurnitureBank.org

Paul Bernhard of Paul Bernard Exhibits is back to talk about the Houston Museum of Natural Science's new Weiss Energy Hall 3.0: Energy City. It's a massive, state-of-the-art techno-educational installation featuring two motion platforms and the Geovator. We're talking about 30,000 square feet - about the size of a football field – full of new exhibits, including “Energy City,” a 2500 square-foot 3-D model of Houston, the surrounding Gulf coastal waters, and the terrain of southeast and central Texas. Nobody does exhibits like the Museum of Natural Science, they are one of the best museums in the country but you know, built the Texan way so… better. You can see why on their website: www.HMNS.org where you will instantly realize that seeing everything in one trip is impossible.

Keith Ostfeld aka Mr. O is back! The resident Mad Scientist at the Children’s Museum of Houston is also their director of educational technology and exhibit development. Every year, the Children's Museum transform into a Holliday Wonderland set up to share the many cultures of Houston and how they celebrate the holidays. They are open late from the 22nd through the 2nd, celebrating The Season of Sharing. You'll also have the opportunity to take part of the Rockin' New Year's Noon Bash on the 31st and this year, you can visit their Cum Yah Gullah exhibit, one of the great stories of American culture.
There is too much going on to mention it all so go to: www.cmhouston.org

Andy Smith is with Texas Parks and Wildlife and The Battleship Texas Foundation. The Texas is the magnificent battleship commissioned in 1912 which is moored near the San Jacinto Monument. It fought in both world wars and that is merely scratching the surface of her extraordinary history.
To preserve it, Andy and his team pump over 500 tons of water out of it every day and they are constantly making repairs as the structure deteriorates (she's a riveted construction). They are building the funds to put the ship in a permanent dry dock where she will continue to serve as a memorial to the men who sailed on it. So head over to www.BattleshipTexas.org, plan on taking the hard hat tour with your kids and consider donating a few bucks to help the Texas find a permanent, dry dock.

Sarah Flournoy is the program manager of Bird Friendly Communities for Houston Audubon and Richard Gibbons is their Conservation director. We discuss the consequences of the flood on our local sanctuaries. Our area is a "highway" for migratory birds. Millions fly across the gulf coast on their way to warmer climates and urbanization has had catastrophic, damaging effects their habitat. We also talk about building bat houses and how to help Audubon count birds which helps them keep track of their evolution.
You'll be pleasantly surprised by some of the simple, inexpensive steps you can take to make your yard much more bird-friendly.
www.houstonaudubon.org

Kim Tobin Lehl and Philip Lehl are the founders and co-executive directors of 4th Wall Theatre. For the past 7 years they have produced some of the best plays I've seen and this holiday, they aim to make everyone laugh with Craig Lucas' "Reckless". The show opens Friday, December 1st and runs through December 16th.
We talk about the value of art companies and the great difficulties they all face to fund their programs. It is a constant uphill battle to produce great shows and pay the professionals who make them happen.
By the way, there will be a tremendous bit of great news announced at the premiere of "Reckless" on December 1st. I have been forbidden from saying anything more but you can get your tickets and enjoy a great evening out: www.4thwalltheatreco.com

Dr. Melissa Joyner is a radiation oncologist and the chair of the St. Joseph Medical Center Radiation Oncology department and Dr. Daisha Hayden is a radiologist on the medical staff at St. Joseph Medical Center. They discuss the simple steps for women to follow in order to detect any cancerous lumps in their breasts as early as possible. Experts recommend that beginning at age 40, women should get a yearly mammogram. The decision to get one saves the lives of over 6500 women every year who are diagnosed early enough that they can be cured. It's all very encouraging but we must keep up the awareness campaigns.
www.StJosephMammo.com
713-757-7593