Brenda Valdivia

3 weeks ago | houstonpublicmedia.org | Brenda Valdivia

Each election cycle, the Lone Star Parity Project tracks the number of men and women running for elected office in Texas in primary and general elections. According to its latest report, 2025 State of the Texas Woman, more than a thousand men ran unopposed in various offices across the state in 2024. The non-partisan organization wants to change that. Adrianna Maberry is its co-founder and research director.

1 month ago | houstonpublicmedia.org | Brenda Valdivia

Houston is a foodie paradise, famous for our steaks, BBQ, and Tex-Mex. But real Houstonians know there is so much more to be savored. Craving fresh-baked bread? A killer deli? A farmers market bursting with local goodies? That got Houston Matters producer Brenda Valdivia thinking: What if we made the Houston sandwich? A sandwich made entirely from local ingredients — baked, roasted, matured, pickled, and harvested here in Houston.

1 month ago | houstonpublicmedia.org | Brenda Valdivia |Craig Cohen

Comedian Tom Papa can be seen, heard and read all sorts of places. He’s been a successful standup for more than 20 years. He’s appeared on radio shows, including on Sirius XM satellite, on NPR’s Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me (where he's served as both a panelist and substitute host), and on his own podcast called Breaking Bread. He’s also an actor and author. A number of his standup specials are available for streaming, including his most recent for Netflix called Tom Papa: Home Free.

2 months ago | houstonpublicmedia.org | Craig Cohen |Brenda Valdivia |Joshua Zinn

Two audience members prepare to watch The Moonwalkers: A Journey with Tom Hanks, now playing at Space Center Houston. (Photo Credit: Photo by Brenda Valdivia)Space Center Houston displays many artifacts used by NASA in space exploration and trainings such as this space suit. (Photo Credit: Photo by Brenda Valdivia)Opening night of U.S. premiere of The Moonwalkers: A Journey with Tom Hanks. Artemis crew members also provided voice overs for the film.

2 months ago | houstonpublicmedia.org | Brenda Valdivia

After two decades and more than 200 participants, the local comedy wrestling event Doomsday Wrestling took its final bow on March 1 with a sold-out show at Bad Astronaut Brewing. The decision was made to end the long-running event after the death Greg Vallot, who was the heart and soul of Doomsday Wrestling as its creator, coordinator, manager, announcer, and even a wrestler himself.