A Cleveland funeral home owner will be in the spotlight next month at the H-Town Awards in Houston. Bryan Neal, owner of Neal Funeral Home, is being honored for assistance he gave an elderly Tarkington couple following Tropical Storm Imelda and Hurricane Harvey. The couple’s home flooded during both storms.
Neal organized clean-up efforts and drove his tractor into floodwater during the storms to check on the welfare of the man and his wife.
Tim Martin and Don May, the creators of H-Town Awards, saw videos of Neal that were shared on Facebook and decided to honor him with a community award, one of several awards that will be handed out at the awards ceremony on Nov. 6 at the Revention Center in Houston.
“The community awards recognize the everyday heroes in our community,” said Martin. “They are given to people who go above and beyond.”
Martin and May added that they recently gave a community award to a Houston-area teacher for her commitment to her students.
“Everyone calls people out for doing something wrong. Our philosophy is to call people out for doing something right,” Martin said.
According to May, other honorees at the event include Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale, owner of Gallery Furniture in Houston, for his tireless support of the Houston area and its residents; a Vietnam veteran; and breakthrough artists in various music genres.
“It’s a non-political event. It’s all about uplifting,” Martin said.
The awards show will begin at 7 p.m. on Nov. 6. For ticket prices and information, go online to htownawards.com.