UNCF 35th Anniversary “A Mind Is…” Gala – Houston

Chris Williams, a 2022 James Beard Award finalist and a 2023 semifinalist for Outstanding Restaurateur, trained in French, Mediterranean, West Indian, and East African cuisine, found his calling through a rich family history of culinary pioneers. Educated at Le Cordon Bleu in Austin, Texas, Williams traveled globally, honing his craft before opening Lucille’s in August 2012. Named after his great-grandmother Lucille B. Smith, a Texan culinary trailblazer, and the state’s first African American businesswoman, the restaurant merges Southern cooking with international techniques. Williams’ legacy-driven approach has earned national acclaim and led to the expansion of Lucille’s Hospitality Group, including Lucille’s, The Rado Market, Late August, Lucille’s 1913, as well as Emile’s Black Point Bistro stationed in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Williams’ non-profit, Lucille’s 1913, functions as a conscious community collective that is building a vertically integrated ecosystem to combat food insecurity and waste and empowering communities to discover a self-sustainable livelihood through cultural and culinary arts. It has provided more than 1,000,000 meals to Houstonians in need. Williams is celebrated for his innovative impact on the culinary and broader community, receiving numerous accolades and serving as a culinary cultural ambassador for the U.S. in several countries.

The Links, Incorporated founded in 1946 is one of the nation’s oldest and largest volunteer service organizations of extraordinary women who are committed to enriching, sustaining and ensuring the culture and economic survival of African Americans and other persons of African ancestry. The Links, Incorporated, is built on the tenants of service and friendship and contributes more than 1 million hours of community service annually. The Links, Incorporated, focus on five program facets which include Services to Youth, The Arts, National Trends and Services, International Trends and Services, and Health and Human Services. 

The local cluster consists of nine chapters who are proudly recognized as community involvement pacesetters. Together, the cluster has awarded more than $500,000 in scholarships, supported crucial health initiatives (especially during the pandemic), influenced social responsibility in exercising the right to vote, and provides financial, academic, career readiness, parenting skills, and health & wellness training, and education to families in the Houston Metropolitan area. In addition, members also help to educate minority youth and adults in the arts and to present and support performances by youth and accomplished professional artists in a diversity of disciplines.

Terence H. Fontaine is a native Houstonian and a product of the Houston Independent School District, graduating from Bellaire High School. After attending Texas State Technical Institute, Fontaine entered the United States Marine Corps where he began his aviation career. During his seven-year tenure in the Marines, Fontaine worked in aviation operations, learned to fly, and studied aircraft maintenance while serving his country. Fontaine lived and studied abroad while working towards earning his Bachelor of Science Degree in Aviation Management from Southern Illinois University. After an Honorable Discharge and a successful career at Continental and ExpressJet Airlines as an airline pilot and instructor, Fontaine was selected by Houston Mayor Bill White to join his executive team at city hall.

During his tenure with the city, Fontaine continued his education and received an MBA from the University of Houston, Bauer School of Business, and a doctorate in Higher Education from Texas Southern University.

Currently, Fontaine serves as the Executive Director of Aviation at Texas Southern University. He was hired in May of 2018. At that time the university did not own any aircraft. In 2024, TSU flies a fleet of ten aircraft and employs nine flight instructors. In 2023, the aviation program earned its first national ranking and added a drone concentration. Recently, TSU became one of only 44 universities in the world with an Aviation Accreditation Board International (AABI) accreditation for its professional pilot program.

Fontaine is a member of Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church where he serves as a Deacon and served as co-building chairman of a 50-million-dollar new Cathedral and Learning Center. Fontaine is a Lifetime Vice President of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. He has also served as Chairman, Director, or Advisor on many boards including Metropolitan Transit Authority, , Houston Conventions and Visitors Bureau, Houston Community College Foundation, United Negro College Fund, Communities in Schools, Congressman Al Green’s Military Academy, and Houston Area Urban League, just to name a few. . Most recently, Fontaine was named to the Midtown TIRZ Board. He is a member of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, and the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals. Fontaine and his wife, Diedra Booker Fontaine, are the proud parents of Courtney Ann Fontaine, JD.