HOUSTON -- For much of the past decade, the Astros have dedicated a segment of their offseason to raising funds for New Hope Housing, which combats homelessness by providing housing and support services for those in need.
The Astros Foundation’s Diamond Dreams Gala has raised millions since its first one in 2016. This year’s event was held at Minute Maid Park and drew 1,500 guests -- including Astros owner Jim Crane and several well-known players from the years past. The event included a silent auction and a live auction that offered signed memorabilia and once-in-a-lifetime baseball experiences that will take place during the 2025 season.
There was also a “golden ticket” lottery -- 100 tickets sold at the price of $500. The winner was gifted with two season tickets for 2025. In total, the gala raised nearly $2 million.
“We worked all year for this,” said Paula Harris, the executive director of the Astros Foundation and senior VP of community affairs. “To have so many people here, working together, playing together, dancing together, all night long, all for the homeless in Houston … We know the problem. We just want to be part of the solution.”
The Astros draw a large crowd every year to the gala, which features a well-known musical guest who performs on a stage set up in center field. This year’s performer was Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter, record producer, actor and dancer Ne-Yo.
Past musical guests include James Taylor; Diana Ross; Lionel Richie; Earth, Wind & Fire; Gladys Knight; Boyz II Men; and Seal.
On the baseball side, Astros manager Joe Espada attended with his wife, Pamela. Others in attendance included pitching coach Josh Miller and members of the broadcast team: Julia Morales (who emceed the event), Geoff Blum, Brian Bogusevic, Robert Ford, Todd Kalas, Steve Sparks and Francisco Romero. Former players in attendance included Brandon Backe, Jeff Bagwell, Enos Cabell, Roger Clemens, Larry Dierker, Charles Gipson, Charlton Jimerson, James Mouton, Terry Puhl, Josh Reddick, Chris Sampson and Eric Yelding.
New Hope Housing is a nationally recognized, award-winning organization with a housing and services model that has helped more than 13,000 people with safe, affordable apartment homes.
“We have four buildings under construction,” said Mack Fowler, chairman emeritus of New Hope Housing. “These are multimillion-dollar buildings, so that’s a pretty good situation for us. When we finish these buildings, we’ll be housing about 4,000 Houstonians. That’s a major leap for us from when we first started.
“We’re even more focused on the services that we need to give our tenants. In many cases, these people can’t afford the services that you or I could afford, and they need these services to deal with some of the problems that brought them to homelessness or near homelessness. New Hope, in all humbleness, we think we know how to address this problem. We think between us addressing more or less of it is the kind of money we intend to raise tonight.”