Dr. Buinger Honored with Catalyst of Hope Award
Carolina Ramirez
Dr. Gene Buinger has been the Superintendent of the award winning HEB ISD for 14 years. This year he was awarded the Gary McKamie Catalyst of Hope Award for all he does to make a difference not only in the lives of the students of HEB ISD, but the entire community. He is also an advocate for 6 Stones. Watch the video above and check out the article below from HEB ISD website.
Hundreds of community leaders, elected officials, and community volunteers turned out to recognize Superintendent of Schools Dr. Gene Buinger as 6 Stones Mission Network presented him with the Gary McKamie Catalyst of Hope Award at a special luncheon Jan. 24.
Before Buinger was introduced, luncheon host Dave Crome of Texas Motor Speedway media relations explained the origins of the award.
“The Gary McKamie Award was created to recognize those that embody the mission, vision, and values of 6 Stones Mission Network and display the incredible leadership, vision and courage to be a Catalyst for our community. The award is named after Gary McKamie, the first recipient who has brought significant change and action to shape the HEB community for years to come. And this year’s award goes to Dr. Gene Buinger.”
Buinger has supported 6 Stones Mission Network from its inception in 2009 and is a member of their board of directors. He described 6 Stones as the “best thing that has happened to this community in the 14 years I have been here.”
Scott Sheppard, executive director of 6 Stones, presented an overview of the many community and school district partnership projects of 2012. This included the Black vs Blue Showdown, a canned food drive that involved every campus in HEB ISD. The project was the result of a letter Sheppard received from Allison Okruch, a junior high student who wanted to alleviate poverty in HEB ISD.
Sheppard said his group took the annual Black vs Blue food drive and “took it to the next level.” Students collected more than 44,000 cans of food just before the holidays. Okruch attended the luncheon as a guest of 6 Stones.
Sheppard made a surprise announcement that the 6 Stones board has created the Dr. Gene and Mary Kay Buinger scholarship to help high school students go to college. 6 Stones has a major event coming up May 18, the “Run for Hope,” and a portion of funds raised will go toward the scholarship.
After the luncheon, many well-wishers, including State Senator Wendy Davis and Euless City Manager Gary McKamie, stopped to congratulate Buinger and pledge their support of future 6 Stones events.