Phoebe Tudor
Phoebe Tudor is an active community volunteer involved primarily with the arts, historic preservation, parks, education, and quality-of-life issues. A native of Louisiana, she has lived in Houston for more than 25 years. She and her husband, Bobby, believe in giving back to their community and striving to make the world a better place.
Ms. Tudor earned her B.A. in art history from the University of Virginia and an M.S. in historic preservation from Columbia University. She began her career as an architectural historian in New Orleans and worked as a free-lance preservation consultant. She currently serves on the Board of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and chairs the organization鈥檚 Preservation and Historic Sites Committee. She supported the restoration of the historic Rotunda at the University of Virginia, and she is on the Board of the Nantucket Historical Association, where she chaired their largest fundraiser, Nantucket by Design, for three years (2017-2019).
Ballet and the performing arts are among Ms. Tudor鈥檚 lifelong loves. Having studied dance from an early age, she was proud to serve as president and chairman of the Board of the Houston Ballet. She and her husband have chaired the Ballet Ball, were the honorees at the Houston Ballet鈥檚 2015 Masked Ball, and are honorary chairmen at the 2020 50th Anniversary Ballet Ball. The Tudors have twice chaired the Society for the Performing Arts Gala, chaired the Symphony Ball in 2013, and were honored at the 2014 Symphony Ball with the Centennial Ima Hogg Philanthropy Award. Of her many activities, Ms. Tudor is particularly proud to have been the winner of the first 鈥淒ancing with the Houston Stars鈥 event, benefitting the Houston Ballet. She was also selected to serve on Mayor Parker鈥檚 Arts and Cultural Plan Committee, and on Mayor Turner鈥檚 Quality of Life Transition Committee.
Parks are another of Ms. Tudor鈥檚 loves. She chaired the Hermann Park Conservancy鈥檚 Centennial Campaign in 2014, resulting in the building of the beautiful new Centennial Garden and Pavilion. After twenty years of involvement, she served as chairman of the Hermann Park Conservancy Board, and she also serves on the Houston Parks Board, working on the Bayou Greenways 2020 project. She has co-chaired the Hermann Park Luncheon on the Green and was honored at the Evening in the Park at Hermann Park in 2015.
Ms. Tudor鈥檚 other contributions to the civic life of Houston have been immense. She was the founding chairman of the Julia Ideson Library Preservation Partners, which raised funds to renovate and expand Houston鈥檚 oldest library, and she was appointed by the mayor to Houston鈥檚 Archeological and Historical Commission, serving as chairman for four of her seven years on the commission. She also serves on the Board of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, chairing the Arts of Europe and the Mediterranean Committee, and she is currently working with Harris County as founding chairman of the Astrodome Conservancy, a public-private partnership to repurpose the historic Houston Astrodome.
In 2013 Ms. Tudor was named Preservationist of the Year by Preservation Houston, which bestowed its President鈥檚 Award on her two years later. She is a member of the William Ward Watkins Society, the Advisory Council at the Rice School of Architecture. She has received the Meritorious Service Award from Rice University for her involvement with many projects there. She also received the Civic Vision Award from the Houston chapter of the American Institute of Architects, and she and her husband were honored at the Rice Design Alliance gala celebrating philanthropy.
In the realm of education, Ms. Tudor and her husband served as chairmen of the Citizens for Better Schools, supporting the historic $1.8 billion 2012 HISD bond election to fund new high schools, and they have continued to serve on HISD鈥檚 Bond Oversight Committee. Ms. Tudor has served on the Advisory Board of Raise Your Hand Texas, and of Teach for America, Houston. The Tudors have been honored by the Houston A+ Challenge for their efforts to support public education, the Children鈥檚 Defense Fund as their Champions for Children, and as 鈥淔amily of the Year鈥 by the Family Services of Greater Houston. Their generosity has earned them the prestigious Maurice Hirsh Award for Philanthropy at the 2018 National Philanthropy Day Awards Luncheon of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
Statement: I love parks. I have had the pleasure of serving on the board of the Houston Parks Board and the Hermann Park Conservancy. I was also able to lead the fundraising campaign for the Centennial Gardens at Hermann Park, working with Hoerr Schaudt Landscape Architects, and was closely involved with the most recent master-planning process for the park with Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates. I am happy to support the 100 Women Campaign and 亚洲精品无码一区, based on a shared appreciation for history, as well as landscape architecture.