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Ten questions for Flipped Off’s Kristen Bredehoeft

June 2nd, 2012 by David Ruth

Kristen Bredehoeft is a single mother of three, but these days her hardest job may be controlling two brothers in the A&E show “Flipped Off.”

Bredenhoeft, a Pearland, Texas, real estate agent was tapped for the first season of Flipped Off, a show that’s led by Russell Hantz, the “Master Manipulator” from three seasons of Survivor. In the show, Hantz, along with his brother Shawn as project manager, set out to be the kings of house flipping in Houston.

Kristen Bredehoeft

Kristen Bredehoeft photo courtesy A&E

Besides providing her expertise in the Houston real estate marketplace, Bredehoeft’s role is to often “slap some sense into the Hantz brothers when their egos get in the way of making money,” according to the show.

Now at the midway point in the show’s first season, Bredehoeft was kind enough to take some question from us.

Pearland, Texas’s 10 questions for Flipped Off’s Kristen Bredehoeft:

Pearland, Texas, FB: Tell us about you and your Pearland ties.

KB: I grew up in Pearland. Other than college at Sam Houston State University (SHSU) after Pearland High School, I have always lived in Pearland. In August 2011 my kids and I moved to Montgomery, TX with my parents. Although an hour and half away, I still make it back to Pearland almost weekly. With my real estate office there and all of my best friends, it is a necessity to come back.

Pearland, Texas, FB: What has been your career and career track — what’s on your LinkedIn profile?

KB: I have been a real estate broker for more than five years now and an agent for a few years before that. I owned a real estate company in Friendswood. For most of my 20’s I was a stay-at-home mommy and ran my real estate company with a kid on each hip. After my divorce, I went back to college fulltime (18 hours a semester) and landed an internship at Houston’s ABC 13, KTRK, with intentions of being a news reporter, which is what I went to school for at SHSU. And of course, still practicing real estate as it has always been a passion of mine.

Pearland, Texas, FB: How did you get approached to do the show?

KB: A friend of mine from high school works at the apartment complex that the production company lived in while filming here in Houston. One of the producers of the show told my friend that they were looking for an agent good on camera. The stars just aligned for me. I was contacted and hired immediately.

Pearland, Texas, FB: What is the show all about — premise, locations, etc.?

KB: Russell Hantz (the most well known Survivor contestant) and his brother are flipping houses here in Houston. I am the real estate broker on the show. But, if you have seen the show it is clearly isn’t just a real estate house flipping show. There is drama, drama, drama.

Pearland, Texas, FB: What’s your typical shoot day (week?) like?

KB: We are officially wrapped up for season one now. We filmed season one for an entire year. My typical work week consists of a very nontraditional way of working. Usually I would receive a phone call from either the producer or director a day or two before filming, and they’d tell me when they needed me. For a whole year, I never told them no. I made it happen no matter how hard it was. After about five months of filming, they asked me to be a member of the cast and not just the real estate broker. I, of course, accepted this role and my hours went from about four hours a week to about 15 hours a week.

Pearland, Texas, FB: How many episodes have/will air and when does it run through?

KB: There are seven episodes total in season one. There are three left to air. We are still unsure if we will get picked up for a second season, but I fully trust that it’s ALL in God’s hands. If we do not get picked up, I know in my heart that He will lead me to where I need to be.

Pearland, Texas, FB: Have you kept your day job? Has the show helped your day job?

KB: During filming for season one, a dear old friend of mine, Ozzie Ramirez, with Trustmore Realty offered to partner up with me and create my own team within his company. Kristen Team Realty formed and Ozzie has taken huge strides to prepare for all of the leads that have come our way since the show has aired. So, because of the show, my real estate career has taken off as we are receiving a lot of exposure from Flipped Off.

Pearland, Texas, FB: What has been the best/worst part of this experience?

KB: Best- The look on my children’s faces when they see me on TV. Since my divorce I have had my time with them minimized due to being a full-time college student, intern at a news station and then the TV show. So, it is such a proud moment for me to finally see the benefits of all of my hard work on their faces as they watch mommy on TV. Worse- Uncertainty. I have no idea where this will all lead. I have been offered small movie roles, magazine covers, interviews, which all seem very exciting but every decision I make is a decision for Kristen and three kids. Not just Kristen. And I want to always make sure it’s right for them first.

[Editor’s note: After this interview, KB was offered to be on the Howard Stern show and his “Hottie of the Week” segment.]

Pearland, Texas, FB: Do you see yourself transitioning into entertainment?

KB: I am actually working with a manager in Los Angeles now. I have been offered a few gigs, such my own reality show, but it all depends on Flipped Off and if we get picked up for a second season. If we do not, I will most definitely look into other TV opportunities.

Pearland, Texas, FB: I’ve asked you nine questions, but what is the most obvious question I’m forgetting? And then answer it!

KB: HOW DO I HANDLE RUSSELL HANTZ??!!! How? A lot of patience! He is known as the “villain” from Survivor. I have gotten so mad at him I couldn’t see straight but a few prayers and deep breaths, along with knowing that this is ALL worth it, I managed to get through a year of working with him. And in that year, he has kind of grown on me. Like family now.

A&E’s “Flipped Off” airs Saturdays at 10 p.m. CDT. Locally, A&E is on DIRECTV channel 265; Comcast channel 23; and on AT&T U-verse channel 132.

Previously aired episodes can be seen at http://www.aetv.com/flipped-off.



Center Court fundraiser for Pearland Neighborhood Center

March 26th, 2012 by David Ruth

Thanks for your interest the 4th Annual Center Court Pizza & Brew Charity Golf Tournament. The golf tournament benefits the Pearland Neighborhood Center.

To sign up for the tournament, download the form (.pdf) here.

For sponsorship information, visit here for the .pdf.

Via Center Court: It’s that time of year again! For the fourth straight year, we here, at Center Court Pizza & Brew, hold an annual golf tournament to say thanks to our loyal customers but, more importantly, to raise money for a charity in which we feel could a helping hand. Following in step with last year, our charity of choice is the Pearland Neighborhood Center (PNC).

PNC is a multiservice organization that helps all of northern Brazoria County with services like
Share Your Holidays, food and baby pantry, disaster relief, resume help, and so many other
crucial services. They achieve this by working with other, broader reaching, organizations like
United Way of Brazoria County and Delpelchin’s Children’s Center – which have offices located
within the center. With your help, we can hold an event that can help many that cannot help
themselves.

Furthermore, we have found out from past sponsors that the tournament itself is a great way
to reach current or future customers. Each year our attendance has grown and we are
projected to max out our tournament this year with 140+ players.

This year we are offering four different levels of sponsorship opportunities. If you are interested
in sponsoring a hole, please fill out the attached Sponsor Registration Form and either email,
mail, or drop it off at Center Court Pizza & Brew – Pearland no later than April 16th. We also ask
that payment be attached with the form.



White House visit for National Medal of Science ceremony

October 23rd, 2011 by David Ruth

I traveled to Washington, D.C., this past week to attend the National Medal of Science ceremony at the White House. Rice’s Richard Tapia was among seven scientists in the U.S. to receive the medal this year. The medal is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government. Below are photos from my visit. The trip included a Rice alumni dinner at Equinox, a Tapia interview at NPR headquarters and the White House ceremony. Before the ceremony, I attended the daily WH media briefing in the briefing room (I had a press credential), where President Obama announced the end of the war in Iraq and that the remaining troops there would return home by Christmas. Click on image thumbnails to increase its size.

The White House

The White House, 10/21/2011

 

 

Media holding area outside prior to East Room ceremony

President Obama in the East Room of the White House, 10/21/2011

President Obama White House media briefing -- announcing the end of the war in Iraq.

 

Richard Tapia receiving the National Medal of Science

 

NPR studio control room, Washington headquarters

The White House press room. 10/21/2011

Richard Tapia receiving the National Medal of Science

 



Pearland, Texas, housekeeping

August 7th, 2011 by David Ruth

Sunday housecleaning:

This week we’ll have the aforementioned Scentsy giveaway from Wendy Ali. The contest will run from Wednesday Scentsy warmerto Friday. Simply comment on the ad (you may comment once a day). The drawing will take place at lunchtime on Friday. Details on the actual prize will be posted Wednesday.

Check out Wendy’s Facebook page.

The week of 8/15 we’ll have a photo sitting and photos to take home from Victoria Lind Photography! This will be a Monday- Friday qualifying, with a drawing on 8/19!

Check out Victoria Lind’s website here.Victoria Lind Photography - photo of child To the left is a lovely photo from the website. Isn’t it about time to get your family or child in?

Who wants to be “Liked?”

We are more than glad to “Like” your page on the Pearland page! Simply let us know by posting something to the Wall or emailing me at druth@rice.edu.

We are now also starting to highlight our Liked Pages on the homepage. Right now, I’m featuring our Houston sports teams, Wendy Ali – Independent Scentsy Consultant and Center Court Pizza & Brew (Love the pizza). If you’re interested in a deal to have your business page featured in our Liked area of our homepage, please drop me a note at druth@rice.edu.

Pearland Little LeaguePearland Little League logo

The Pearland Maroon team plays in a semifinal game Monday evening. The guys are now two wins away from winning the regional and, knock on wood, appear for the second year in a row at the Little League World Series.

Good Luck, guys!

As always, please post to the wall about all things Pearland, Texas, at www.facebook.com/PearlandTexas.

Have a great week!

David Ruth
Pearland page admin

 

 



Long week results in a lot of Shameless PR

June 18th, 2011 by David Ruth

Yes, I know, selfish and shameless PR is not popular, but that’s what you’re getting from me on the heels of six baseball games in three days and a week’s trip to the beautiful campus of Michigan State University … GO SPARTANS! The first-night’s dinner at MSU included an off-the-record conversation with Men’s Head Basketball Coach Tom Izzo. If I were to repeat what he said about the NCAA, neither of us might not work in higher education again. Seriously, he gave us a lot of time and candid thoughts about how administration, athletics and the media need to fix our game. GREAT speaker.

Tom Izzo

Tom Izzo goes off the record with Big Ten Plus communicators

There is a lot to talk about, but I’m most proud that my community-based online forum on Facebook has hit 4,500 fans or “Likes.” Not bad for a suburb of 90,000 people. The www.facebook.com/PearlandTexas page was born from doing research on Facebook marketing for a news release that I was working on last year. The researcher, Utpal Dholakia, at the time sent me his latest data on whether or not it’s worth it for businesses to market via Facebook. Because I was curious and wanted to learn more, I started a page for Pearland, Texas, last year.

This week, I worked with Dholakia to promote his research on daily deal sites — his third and most exhaustive. Dholakia’s work is the most current and most cited by media and business. Check out the full release here.

But here it is in a nutshell:

Forecast: Tough times ahead for daily deal sites

Daily deal sites: get while getting is good

Over the next few years, it is likely that daily deal sites will have to settle for lower shares of revenues from businesses compared with their current levels, and it will be harder and more expensive for them to find viable candidates to fill their pipelines of daily deals, according to Rice University Associate Professor of Management Utpal Dholakia. In his third study – the most exhaustive study done to date on the daily deals industry – Dholakia found that there is very little difference between companies in the ever-expanding competition for consumer dollars, and it will be difficult for any one site to stand out from the others.

Key findings:

  • 21.7 percent of deal buyers never redeem the vouchers they’ve already paid for.
  • 55.5 percent of businesses reported making money, 26.6 percent lost money and 17.9 percent broke even on their promotions.
  • Although close to 80 percent of deal users were new customers, significantly fewer users spent beyond the deal’s value or returned to purchase at full price.
  • 48.1 percent of businesses indicated they would run another daily deal promotion, 19.8 percent said they would not and 32.1 percent said they were uncertain.

Media citations included:

Half of all daily deals don’t increase profits or sales
Time

Is Groupon a savior or a destroyer?
Reuters

Groupon hug from small businesses? Not so much
The Register (U.K.)

A new way to beat deal fatigue
SmartMoney.com

Study offers grim news on deal sites like Groupon
Fortune

Why the numbers are stacked against daily deal sites
Entrepreneur

Not to be undone, this week I had the opportunity to work with my pals at my former employer, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Texas-San Antonio on a study that said …

Study shows that flashy spending may work for the short term but not for marriage.

Yes, it got a lot of attention also. To read the full release, go here.

Does driving a Porsche make a man more desirable to women?

Does driving a Porsche make a man more desirable to women?

In a nutshell:
New research by faculty at Rice University, the University of Texas-San Antonio (UTSA) and the University of Minnesota finds that men’s conspicuous spending is driven by the desire to have uncommitted romantic flings. And, gentlemen, women can see right through it.

The series of studies, “Peacocks, Porsches and Thorstein Veblen: Conspicuous Consumption as a Sexual Signaling System,” was conducted with nearly 1,000 test subjects and published recently in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

Media citations included:

FoxNews.com (This article also appeared on MyFoxHouston.com, MyFoxTwinCities.com [Minn.], MyFoxTampaBay.com [Fla.], MyFoxBoston.com, MyFoxOrlando.com [Fla.], MyFoxPhoenix.com, MyFoxPhilly.com [Philadelphia], MyFoxNewYork.com, MyFoxDFW.com [Dallas], MyFoxDetroit.com, MyFoxDC.com [Washington, D.C.], MyFoxChicago.com, MyFoxMemphis.com [Tenn.] and MyFoxLA.com [Los Angeles].)

Flashy sports cars are male ‘short-term mating signal’
BBC.co.uk (This article also appeared in the Ghana News.)

Fox News Channel VIDEO ‘Happening Now’ (This story also appeared on Fox Business Network.)

Men who buy the bling apparently do it for a fling
Houston Chronicle

Does he want a one-night stand or something more?
Cosmopolitan

Big spenders attract flings, but not marriage
Yahoo.com

Science links Porsches and peacocks
Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Lastly, we were busy this week interviewing for a replacement left void when one of media relations’ team members took a job at a PR firm in Washington, D.C. I’m hoping that we hire someone new by the end of next week.

We’re also welcoming Brandon Martin, a videographer from KRPC-TV (NBC HOUSTON), to my team on Monday. Brandon will be charged with SHOWING the world what Rice has to offer. I can already tell that he’s going to be a great addition to the team — he’s willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done. I met his beautiful baby girl yesterday. Brandon is married to a local reporter at the Fox affiliate here to boot.

Here’s hoping for a more sane week, but from what I know is ahead, I don’t think it’s going to happen!

In the meantime, if you want to learn more about Pearland, Texas, this week, I found two great folks who will be helping to populate the Twitter feed of the site at @FM518. Check it out!

-dr



Rice experts available for Pawlenty announcement

May 21st, 2011 by David Ruth

David Ruth
713-348-6327
druth@rice.edu

Rice University experts available to discuss Tim Pawlenty entering presidential race
Pawlenty is expected to announce on Monday that he is running for the Republican nomination

HOUSTON — (May 21, 2011) — Rice University political scientist Mark Jones and historian Douglas Brinkley are available to comment on former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty expected announcement Monday that he will seek the Republican Party nomination for president.

Pawlenty will be the fourth Republican to formally declare his candidacy, joining former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Texas Congressman Ron Paul and former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson. Several other potential candidates are waiting in the wings.

“With a reputation as a pragmatic moderate of a state that generally votes Democrat in presidential elections, Pawlenty would represent a credible threat to President Obama’s re-election chances,” said Jones, professor and chair of political science and fellow in political science at the Baker Institute for Public Policy. “It remains to be seen however if Pawlenty will be able to gain the support of conservative Republican primary voters as well as raise his profile to the national level. The two-term former governor of Minnesota will compete with Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels for the moderate and pragmatic Republican vote.”

“Through the process of elimination, Tim Pawlenty has emerged as a low-key conservative from a swing state,” said Brinkley, professor of history and fellow in the Baker Institute for Public Policy. “And because of the proximity of Minnesota, he could play well in Iowa.”

To speak with Jones or Brinkley, contact David Ruth at 713-348-6327 or druth@rice.edu.

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Related materials:
http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2011/05/pawlenty-to-mak.php
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/tim-pawlenty-to-announce-for-president-monday/2011/05/20/AFD15n7G_blog.html?hpid=z1

Media note: Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy’s radio and television studio is available for ISDN and HDTV interviews.  Mark Jones is available over the weekend and nationwide; Douglas Brinkley is available beginning Monday morning and only available for national television, print and online news outlets.

Founded in 1993, the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University in Houston ranks among the top 20 university-affiliated think tanks globally and top 30 think tanks in the United States. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute sponsors more than 20 programs that conduct research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows and Rice University scholars. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blogs.chron.com/bakerblog/.



Heart attack survivor needed for TV interview

May 21st, 2011 by David Ruth

Rice University recently issued a news release about a group of students who, for their senior design project, created a unique pad system for automated external defibrillators (AEDs), common devices that can shock a victim’s heart back into a proper rhythm in an emergency. This new device, which has not been used on humans to this point, has been recognized by several news organizations nationwide.

MedStar Television, a producer of medical/health segments for TV news affiliates nationwide, will be coming to Houston on Thursday, June 2, to tape interviews about the device. While this AED device has never been used, MedStar has asked me to help them identify a survivor of a heart attack who had a defibrillator used on them.

If you are interested in telling your personal story of surviving a heart attack and would be willing to conduct an interview on camera at 11 a.m. Thursday, June 2, please contact me at druth@rice.edu. Please provide your phone number so that I can give you a call to chat about the segment. This interview will either take place at the Texas Heart Institute in the Texas Medical Center or across the street on the campus of Rice University. This is a positive story talking about a technological breakthrough.

Thank you,

David Ruth
druth@rice.edu

 

 

 



Pearland Fan Page Constitution

April 25th, 2011 by David Ruth

Constitution is a loaded word, but in any case these are the basic guidelines or principles for the Pearland Facebook community fan page … or “Like” page. This document will be updated and posted when necessary.

The Pearland fan page is nonpartisan. The owner and its admins will not take a political position via proactive posting to fans’ news feeds. They will post news stories or information from other sources to create community conversation. The information posted will not be from a political party or PAC. “Fans” are allowed to post political positions, news stories or information they wish as long as it does not attack another candidate or is derogatory. Comments made by fans will be handled in the same fashion.

Elected officials or candidates are allowed to promote their political positions, beliefs and values on the page at any time — that is valuable information to the community.

Advertising

Businesses are allowed to post ads to the Pearland, Texas, wall on Mondays. We call these “Manic Mondays.” These ads will not appear in your news feed. Nonprofits and fundraisers are always allowed to post to the wall as long as they don’t promote, mention something commercial.

From time-to-time, the Pearland Facebook page will post ads on behalf of local businesses providing a giveaway to the page’s fans. The owner and the admins of this page do not accept advertising income from the site.

Disclaimer

The owner and admins of this site do their best to report correct information about the community of Pearland, Texas. They are not responsible for information posted by fans or by third parties. If we see or are alerted about posts that are offensive or factually wrong, we will act as quickly as possible to rectify the situation. If we, the owner or admins, post information that is incorrect, we will do our best to delete the previous post in a timely manner and post corrected information.

This page is “owned” by David Ruth (www.facebook.com/DavidRuth) and run by volunteers of the community — it is not run by the city of Pearland.

David Ruth
www.facebook.com/PearlandTexas



Legendary hip-hop executive Russell Simmons to appear at Rice today

April 14th, 2011 by David Ruth

Legendary hip-hop executive Russell Simmons to appear at Rice today
HERE Project, Rice ‘Religion and Hip-Hop’ course present special discussion

HOUSTON – (April 14, 2011) – Legendary hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons will be at Rice University today to participate in a special appreciation discussion in honor of the Religion and Hip-Hop course co-taught by Rice Professor Anthony Pinn and rapper Bun B.

Russell Simmons

Russell Simmons

The talk, which is hosted by the Houston Enriches Rice Education (HERE) project, is open to Rice students, faculty and staff and will be held at 3:30 p.m. in McMurtry Auditorium in Duncan Hall. This event is open to the media.

Who: Hip-hop executive, entrepreneur and activist Russell Simmons; Anthony Pinn, the Agnes Cullen Arnold Professor of Humanities and professor of religious studies; and Bernard “Bun B” Freeman, an original member of the legendary duo UGK.

What: Discussion of Simmons’ book, “Super Rich: A Guide to Having It All” and a discussion of yoga meditation.

When: 3:30-4:30 p.m. April 14.

Where: McMurtry Auditorium, Duncan Hall, Rice University campus, 6100 Main St.

Members of the news media covering this event should enter Gate 1 on Main Street and park in the Founder’s Court Visitor Lot. If the lot is full, media should park in the West Lot, which is located near the Shepherd School of Music, accessible via Gate 8 off University Boulevard. Parking will not be allowed on the Inner Loop Road for this event.

For a map of the Rice University campus, visit www.rice.edu/maps/maps.html.

For more information, contact David Ruth at druth@rice.edu or 713-348-6327.

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Located on a 285-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is known for its “unconventional wisdom.” With 3,485 undergraduates and 2,275 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is less than 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice has been ranked No. 1 for best quality of life multiple times by the Princeton Review and No. 4 for “best value” among private universities by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. To read “What they’re saying about Rice,” go to http://futureowls.rice.edu/images/futureowls/Rice_Brag_Sheet.pdf.



Battle of the Badges

March 7th, 2011 by David Ruth

Support our public safety 

GUNS AND HOSES III

PEARLAND FIREFIGHTERS
VS
PEARLAND POLICE 

Charity Flag Football Game
Saturday, March 19, 2011

Presner Stadium 2315 Old Alvin Road
Pre-Game @6pm -Kick off at 7:00pm

*Admission donations are appreciated*

The Finest: will be collecting toys for
“Toys for Tots” 

The Bravest: will be collecting funds to benefit the sick or injured firefighters

Lots of fun, prizes, auctions, and entertainment for all!


Questions: ccrawford237@pearlandvfd.org or 281-831-8028