Museum news

New exhibit coming to North Texas museum honors 9/11 heroes 20 years later

The exhibit on display recently in Lincoln, Nebraska.

A few months ahead of the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 9/11, Fort Worth will be one of 19 cities nationwide to host Honor 365's World Trade Center Exhibit, commemorating the heroes of that unthinkably tragic day.

The exhibit is a replica model of the World Trade Center plaza created by Daan Van Der Steijn from Deurne, The Netherlands. The tagline is, “Remembering the One. Remembering Them All.” The artist gifted the display to Honor365, a nonprofit organization that provides resource and referral support to veterans, first responders, and their families, with special emphasis on mental wellness and suicide prevention.

The replica is touring throughout the United States until September 12, 2021. In Texas, it also has stops scheduled in Galveston and Houston.

According to a release from the city, an Honor Walk ceremony will kick off the display at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, 1600 Gendy St., at 10 am Friday, June 18.

During the public ceremony, local fire and police departments will join with the Mayor’s Office to honor one fallen and one living firefighter, police officer, and service member from the community.

First responders from neighboring cities will be present, and the ceremony will include a full Honor Guard presentation, the release says.

“I am honored that Fort Worth has been chosen as one of the cities to host the Remembering the One. Remembering Them All traveling exhibit commemorating the 20th anniversary of 9/11,” says outgoing Mayor Betsy Price in the release. “Honor 365 has chosen to share an incredible opportunity with our community to come together, both for the exhibit and Honor Walk ceremony, to reflect on the selflessness and service of our fire, police, first responder and military communities and the ways that tragic day has affected us all.”

The exhibit will go on display at the museum immediately following the ceremony and will remain there through July 23. The display coincides with the museum's reopening after its prolonged shutdown brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and damage from Winter Storm Uri.

“The fact that we can honor the fallen heroes of Sept. 11 and the lives lost by our military service members in the last 20 years is something we are grateful to participate in,” says Fort Worth Fire Chief James Davis in the release. “But to also have the opportunity to spotlight the importance of taking care of our first responders and veterans who answered the call to serve in the wake of those terrorist attacks, means that we can truly honor all.”

For more information about the project and the event, visit the Honor 365 website.

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put it on santa's amex

Well-to-do Dallas suburb lands on top-10 list of holiday big spenders

Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

Flower Mound residents have the No. 7 biggest holiday budgets in the U.S. for 2024.

It looks like Santa Claus is going to be competing with residents in Flower Mound to see who brings the most lavish holiday gifts this year.

Festive Flo-Mo ranked No. 7 in WalletHub's annual report on U.S. cities with the biggest holiday budgets in 2024.

Residents in this well-to-do Dallas suburb are expected to spend $3,541 on their Christmas gifts this year. But tsk-tsk: That's down $56 from the $3,485 they were ready to drop in the 2023 ranking — bumping them down two spots from their previous ranking at No. 5.

The U.S. Census Bureau says that Flower Mound's estimated population of 79,445 had a median household income of $154,471 in 2023. No wonder they have the extra cash to spare.

Flower Mound consistently makes the list of the top 10 U.S. cities with the biggest holiday spenders, outshining its nearby neighbor Frisco, which took a precarious drop this year from their previous high ranking of No. 3 in 2023.

They've now fallen off the top-10 list altogether. The average holiday budget in Frisco is still an exorbitant amount – $3,412 – but that only garnered the city No. 11 in the overall ranking out of 558 U.S. cities. You gotta spend to stay on top.

The No. 1 city in the U.S. for biggest holiday spenders in 2024 is Newton, Massachusetts, a wealthy suburb right outside of Boston, where the median income measured in 2022 was $176,373. Slots 2 through 5 were all cities in California's Silicon Valley: Sunnyvale, Palo Alto, Mountain View, and Milpitas.

Seven additional North Texas cities landed in this year's top 100 biggest holiday budgets, including:

No. 18 – Allen ($3,070)
No. 32 – Plano ($2,658)
No. 45 – North Richland Hills ($2,484)
No. 52 – McKinney ($2,386)
No. 76 – Richardson ($1,980)
No. 81 – Carrollton ($1,932)
No. 92 – Lewisville ($1,848)

Meanwhile, Dallas landed at No. 213 this year with an average holiday budget of $1,406, and Fort Worth ranked No. 359 with a budget of $1,082.

Each year, WalletHub calculates the maximum holiday budget for over 550 U.S. cities "to help consumers avoid post-holiday regret," the website says. The study factors in income, age of the population, and other financial indicators such as debt-to-income ratio, monthly-income-to monthly-expenses ratio, and savings-to-monthly-expenses ratio.

Whether a Dallasite's holiday budget is under $200 or more than $1,000, it's better to prioritize remaining within that budget instead of racking up the credit card bill, according to WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

"There are plenty of ways to enjoy the holidays and show you care without spending much money, like hosting potlucks or giving handmade gifts," said Lupo.

Other Texas cities that made it into the top 100 are:

No. 13 – The Woodlands ($3,395)
No. 15 – Sugar Land ($3,214)
No. 23 – Cedar Park ($2,930)
No. 25 – League City ($2,897)
No. 39 – Round Rock ($2,538)
No. 60 – Pearland ($2,223)
No. 87 – Austin ($1,905)

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