Located in Brookshire, approximately 20 minutes from Sealy and just west of Houston, the mission of the Brookwood Community, which was founded in 1983 as a God-centered non-profit organization, is simple: To change the way the world thinks about adults with disabilities.
In the new short documentary film, “A Joyful Place,” Brookwood founder Yvonne Tuttle Streit, who started the community after a childhood illness left her daughter Vicki with severe disabilities, speaks of her daughter’s plight.
“What do you want to do?” Streit says in the film, which recently debuted at the Roundtop Film Festival. “Do you want to give her a chance at the best life she could have? We’re going to teach adults with disabilities to play with the cards they’ve been dealt. Not try to change the deck of cards, but to take it and go with it.”
Streit’s decision coupled with her strong faith sparked a community that sits on 485 sprawling acres and includes a worship center, café, garden center and gift shop. In 1985 Brookwood welcomed its first residents. It is currently home to about 230 residents, who are affectionately known as "citizens.”
“We’re looking for three things for our citizens and that is for them to be safe, happy and healthy,” said Sharon Pullen, Brookwood Community Marketing & Communications Manager. “We want to take the time to fall in love with them, and they need to know and trust us.”
Citizens work in one or more enterprises at the community’s main campus in Brookshire, as well as in one of two satellite locations in Richmond and The Woodlands. On the weekends, Brookwood citizens engage in an active social life that includes going to the movies, concerts and other social events. The residents also participate in various sports and the fine arts and are provided health and wellness services, along with spiritual enrichment.
Brookwood does not operate on government funding but relies instead on donations and routine fundraising events (enterprise revenue generated from its café, store and garden center), capital campaigns and endowments.
Approximately 25% of the community’s annual operating budget comes from donations. In addition to its regular fundraisers, Brookwood holds an annual “I Believe in Brookwood” fall fundraising campaign, in which citizen teams work together to raise funds. Last year’s target goal was $1.8 million.
Brookwood will kick off this year’s fundraising with their annual Rodeo Fashion Show Luncheon on Friday, January 31 from 11 AM-1 PM in the Brookwood Café. Tickets are $60 per person.
The event includes a delicious lunch while viewing the latest trends in rodeo attire as modeled by Brookwood’s citizens, community family members and friends from the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo. Merchandise from Shudde Bros. Hatters also will be on display and available for purchase, as well as fashions and accessories from Pretty Please Boutique and Brookwood’s Gift & Garden Center. This event fills up fast, so hurry over to the Brookwood Community website to reserve your seats!
BROOKWOOD CAFÉ
A popular spot known for its excellent food and breathtaking botanical views, the café is open for lunch from 10:30 AM to 2 PM Monday through Saturday. Menu items include appetizers of cheese ravioli or tender calamari. Entrees offerings range from gourmet burgers, and sandwiches to classic fish and chips, grilled salmon and chicken crepes. The café’s signature Mesibov salad combines mixed greens, crisp red apples, crumbled bleu cheese and homemade candied pecans, complemented by its eponymous dressing, which is sold online.
BROOKWOOD GIFT & GARDEN CENTER
The gift shop and seasonal garden center are located on the community grounds and are open to the public Monday through Saturday from 9 AM to 4:30 PM. Most, but not all, of the items are created by the citizens. From scented soaps and candles to designer handbags, jewelry and gourmet foods, there are plenty of lovely and inspirational items to browse and buy for any occasion. Items from Brookwood’s most popular collections—Christmas cards, ornaments and decorative bowls—also can be purchased through the community’s online store.
WALKING TOURS
Brookwood encourages the public to go on an inspirational and informational walking tour in which they can take an up-close-and-personal look at Brookwood citizens in action and learn about the community’s educational and enterprise programs. In addition, the community’s grounds contain an art gallery curated with a variety of original paintings, jewelry, pottery, Western art and bronze sculptures gifted by Texas artists.
Walking tours require a reservation and may be scheduled Monday through Friday at either 9:30 AM or 12:30 PM and may be combined with shopping at the gift and garden center and lunch in the café.
Most walking tours last about 90 minutes and are available for groups of 10 or more, however, individuals or groups with less than 10 people may be added to an existing group tour. Prospective family tours also are available. It is recommended a tour be scheduled at least one month in advance, especially during the spring, fall, and Christmas seasons.
RESIDENT WORK & ADMISSIONS
Not only do the retail sales from buying at Brookwood help to fund its mission and operational costs but it also provides meaningful work for its citizens, who help create many of the pieces the community sells.
Both citizens and day residents are employed in various areas of the community’s campus which encompass working in the café or gift shop, as well as in ceramics, stone casting, packaging, soap making, and horticulture, to name a few. Transportation to work at Brookwood is provided for the 130 Day Residents who come from Sealy, Brenham, Bellville, Wallis, New Ulm and Houston.
To reinforce their sense of value and purpose, Brookwood works closely with the Department of Labor to ensure every citizen is paid fairly for their work. Pullen said Brookwood uses the social enterprise model (prioritizing social or environmental goals over profit and using said profits to achieve those goals) to provide its residents with work in enterprises that are compatible with each citizen’s unique talents, interests and abilities. For example, a Brookwood citizen with an eye for detail and strong fine motor skills might work with ceramics while a citizen who enjoys being outside in nature could work in horticulture.
“You can’t walk three feet [at Brookwood] without seeing something amazing happening,” Pullen said. This is not just a place to mark time. Everybody here has a purpose and does things that they do well.”
Tuition fees for Brookwood residents are all-inclusive and include room and board, on-site managers, food, and funds to pay the citizens who also work in the various areas on the grounds. Brookwood does not accept insurance or waiver funding. However, it does offer tuition assistance to qualifying families. The community also offers a Day Program at its three locations.
For more information on Brookwood’s admission process, visit www.brookwoodcommunity.org/admissions.
VOLUNTEERS
It is estimated that more than 10,000 people a year participate as volunteers within the Brookwood Community, collaborating with its citizens and staff. Brookwood hosts many special events throughout the year that call for individuals, groups and corporate organizations to serve as volunteers both on and off campus.
To learn more about how to become a Brookwood Community volunteer or to donate, visit their website at www.brookwoodcommunity.org or call 281-375-2100.
ABOUT THE WRITER
Lakendra Lewis is a freelance writer and book editor based in San Antonio, Texas. Her articles focus on the arts, including music, theater, television, and film. She also has a passion for telling other people's stories. Lakendra’s articles have appeared in a variety of South Texas publications, including Edible San Antonio Magazine, Latino Leaders Magazine, The Texas Observer, and RIO Magazine.
DID YOU KNOW?
- Brookwood Community founder Yvonne Tuttle Streit wrote and published a book about the origins of Brookside called “Everybody's Got a Seed to Sew: The Brookwood Story.”
- In 2023, the feature-length film, “Finding Purpose: The Brookwood Story,” won a Remi Award at the WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival.
- Shudde Bros. Hatters operated in Houston for 100 years before becoming part of the Brookwood Community. Al Shudde, who founded the shop as a teenager in 1907, donated the hattery to Brookwood in 2007 and it was moved to Brookshire. The store has a rich history of famous patrons such as John Wayne, Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Tom Mix, Ernest Tubb, and Dr. "Red" Duke. Shudde’s grandson, Neal, runs the business today with proceeds benefiting Brookwood.
- If you’re looking for poinsettias next Christmas, look no further than the Brookwood citizens, who have become famous for growing these perennial plants! The community’s horticulture enterprise produces about 50,000 poinsettias a year in addition to growing around 210,000 plants in 48 greenhouses.
- With the right care, even temperamental Camellias can flourish here in this Texas climate. Join the Brookwood Community from 10:30 AM-1 PM on Friday, January 24 in the café for a delicious Camellias in Texas Lunch and Learn that will expand your knowledge of landscape shrubs with stunning flowers such as Sasanqua, Japonica and other hybrids while you are immersed in the scenic beauty of these lovely plants. Registration is $37.50 (plus tax) and includes a Q&A session with an orchid expert, along with a special take-home gift for each attendee.
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